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GOTY level Impressions

Archive: 116 posts

Some of you may or may not know that you can access the Game of the Year levels by easily going on the hearted list of people who have hearted these levels. This Thread is to post your Impressions

Here are mine:

I started playing the new levels a few hours ago and I must say, I'm not really impressed on the quality of some of these levels. I have played almost all of them now and the levels range from good/average to cool page quality levels. But, it may just be me, I guess I hyped all these levels too much. The only ones that I have liked so far are the levels from geosautus, thekillermiller, and jump_button, but even then I would say they have made better. Well those are my impressions, what are yours?

2009-09-09 23:35:00

Author:
TheFirstAvenger

Posts: 787

I've played nearly all of them. I think perhaps what needs to be remembered is that if the creators were asked around February/March time, then we are looking at levels that are a few months old here. So while it may be true that there are better levels out there now by these or other authors, the levels themselves might not be a true reflection on what would be produced right now.

I think they all should be congratulated on not only making the GOTY, but making these levels under quite a bit of pressure.

2009-09-09 23:46:00

Author:
MrsSpookyBuz

Posts: 1492

Thought just as much. For the creator interviews, I'll just look on youtube, and for the goty levels I'll just join one of my friends with goty lol

2009-09-09 23:49:00

Author:
Incinerator22

Posts: 3251

Thanks, MrsSpookyBuz for the impression, maybe if they hired you the quality of the GOTY levels (overall) would have gone up

Thought just as much. For the creator interviews, I'll just look on youtube, and for the goty levels I'll just join one of my friends with goty lol

Go onto ConfusedCartman's hearted list, he hearted three of these levels and Nuclearfish hearted a few too, although I couldn't find his Goty level and I'm still looking forward to playing it

2009-09-09 23:59:00

Author:
TheFirstAvenger

Posts: 787

For being a few months old, I was still impressed with geosautus's level. It was really great. Same for jump_button's level. I have only played a few more, so I'll wait to pass judgment on them as a whole.

2009-09-10 00:03:00

Author:
comphermc

Posts: 5338

Some of them are cool some are awesome and some are pretty good. It's a nice range of tallent and a good way to get creators of all skill levels inspired I think. Don't expect every one of them to blow your mind though. Many are very good though.

2009-09-10 00:08:00

Author:
Morgana25

Posts: 5983

I can see at least one of the levels upsetting people with its quality. As has been said, just remember these folk were asked ages ago to do this.

2009-09-10 00:12:00

Author:
Matt 82

Posts: 1096

Played a couple. Going to do a full review of them all when I play them tomorrow.

I want great things from them in all honesty, it's not that I expect them to be amazing, I just feel that they should be. The creators were asked to make levels that would be put on an official release and were paid to do so. For that reason, I will not be looking at these like they're normal community levels. Small issues and flaws that can be overlooked in community levels will not be in these for me.

Looking forward to playing them all!

2009-09-10 00:19:00

Author:
jackofcourse

Posts: 1494

I've played a couple of them, and I actually have 1st place on The Tumblerizer.

From what I've played, they are all fantastic levels, and jump-button's has really stuck out. It keeps his style going, but it is just such a well-made level, and totally different from anything in Story Mode.

2009-09-10 01:15:00

Author:
BSprague

Posts: 2325

I've played a few and Geosautus' and thekillermillers both were ace, not surprisingly, so well done guys if you happen to be browsing. I did find a nice big square of dark matter in one of them (not the above) , tut tut, i won't name names. (laugh)

Glad to see we can play these for free!

2009-09-10 01:41:00

Author:
julesyjules

Posts: 1156

The creators whose names you'll recognize did not disappoint with their levels. The lesser known creators didn't quite measure up, but their levels weren't bad at all. I still haven't played them all, but there was only one level I didn't like. It was obviously a well made level, just not my cup o tea.

2009-09-10 02:05:00

Author:
Reef1978

Posts: 527

From what I've played, they range from excellent (from the guys you'd expect) to pretty poor. Quite a few of the levels could've done with a bit more play testing too, since I've managed to sneak out of one or two of them.

2009-09-10 02:06:00

Author:
Matt 82

Posts: 1096

I thought the ones I have played so far were great, some of them had great use of material, such as geosautus' spaceship, and Prism Panic's whole level.

I thought that jump_buttons level was his best, and gevurah's level was brilliant too!

I was angry and happy at the same time as the levels were long, which means more fun, but more rendering for the videos D:

2009-09-10 02:21:00

Author:
Kog

Posts: 2358

I've played a number of them and had a great time.

The one from kratos4 was very cool - he had some nicely done platforming mixed in with the tank segments.

jump_buttons is, in my opinion, his best. Had some great little puzzles, fantastic visuals (as usual!) and well-done gameplay.

As of right now, 2 have really stood out for me:

gevurah22's is RIGHT up my alley. Fantastic arcade-style gameplay with some very original mechanics.

Blorf - this one totally surprised me since his Metal Revolution was fantastic, but at the same time not very casual-gamer friendly. His entry into this was the closest I've seen so far to a Media-molecule experience (including visible switches and mechanics) - and has some great humor.

Are they better than the newer levels that are out now? No... but on the other hand, the ones I've played are extremely clean looking and polished.

All-in-all, I'm glad I purchased it so far. I'm looking forward to the next set of them (haven't played foofles or geosautus' yet).

2009-09-10 02:29:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

Just played geosautus's level so far. I don't have the GOTY game edition though as it's not out in the UK. I wouldn't buy it anyway to be honest because I have most if not all the DLC that's with it already.

One problem I found was I collected the prizes even though I had prize collection turned off. They appeared as collected story mode objects in a new category called community objects. Unfortunately I can't edit them, not even to remove magic mouths or switches and it won't let me delete them either.

I'm afraid I won't be playing any more of the levels until that's fixed. Has anyone else noticed the same problem ?

2009-09-10 02:50:00

Author:
mistervista

Posts: 2210

I don't think they're meant to be deletable, they're in alongside all the storymode objects.

2009-09-10 03:10:00

Author:
julesyjules

Posts: 1156

I've played jump_button's, gevurah's, geosautuss, and the Prism Panic, and geosautus' is hands down the best. jump_button's was good as well, but the other two weren't even really worth mentioning. I doubt I'll play any more - I'm not that into the PLAY portion of LBP.

2009-09-10 03:13:00

Author:
BassDeluxe

Posts: 984

2009-09-10 03:23:00

Author:
Matt 82

Posts: 1096

So far I've played Prism Panic, Gevurah22's level, Jump_Button's level, and the Tube Racer 2 level.

I enjoyed all of them. Prism Panic was a little long for something not engaging enough. The atmosphere I feel could have done with some improvement. Tube Racer was great for what it was - a classic grab and hold racing level - but nothing else. Jump_Button and Gevurah22's levels however were excellent. I agree that Jump_Button's is probably his best so far, and that's no easy feat. Gevurah22's is also amazing, and you get to pilot rocket-powered plasma-shooting samurais!!!! Doesn't get much better than that

Can't wait to play the rest!

2009-09-10 03:43:00

Author:
hilightnotes

Posts: 1230

I played almost every one of these. I caused game breaking problems in 3 of them.

Sorry if this seems mean, but I would have think that Sony would have been playtested a little better seeing how they were going to be on an official release.

Anyway...

My favorite one was X-Nobody-X's for obvious reasons, Foofles comes in second because bunnies are great.

I LOVED tube racer 2, also... especially the beginning. The fact that it started where the last one ended was BRILLIANT.

Geosautus's level was pretty good, too, but I still liked Scary Factory more. ^_^

I really enjoyed Jump_Button's level, too. The use of fake water in that one was really good.

I'm not one for survival challenges at all, but I thought as far as survival challenges go, nuclear fish did a really good job.

I played Aardsy's level, but didn't get to complete it because it was very hard with four people. I might retry it with just myself at a later date.

Anyway, I didn't get to play all of these, but I plan to go back tomorrow and finish the rest of em.

2009-09-10 05:22:00

Author:
xkappax

Posts: 2569

I am pretty sure I have played all of them now, although I didn't get the chance to finish them all as some were a little difficult. Since it is late where I live I plan on replaying all the levels tomorrow (technically later today) and I'll will write a small summary for all of the 18 levels.

But, I must say, overall I'm not really impressed with the quality of the levels. These authors were paid money, and I think this should result in a top notch levels, which I thought were missing :/

2009-09-10 08:08:00

Author:
TheFirstAvenger

Posts: 787

My opinion: They were all good. But several I could get out of the level, one of the TAKLAMAKAN I think it was, the opening was in plain site.. But boy oh boy acing some of those were killer, gevurah you made the bunker look like nothing when compared to yours in regards to acing! Honorable mention, in the catagory for hardest to ace IMO include Blorf cause of those evil spiders and TangoCharlieESQ cause I kept getting crushed from those trampolines.

The prizes I think most were worth it. From the complexity of rz22g's tanks and gevurah's steampunk samarui (which made acing SO worth it), to the artistic of X-Nobody-X (I was kinda hoping jump_button had prizes

but oh well) to TangoCharlieESQ circles objects which make a great substitute for different colored stickers! And I still have to get them all (we need to make a guide or something)

They better not remove our little trick of us regular LBPers playing them from GotY users hearted list or I'll be steamed

You can bet I'll be recording them very soon for Youtube (perhaps even tomorrow!)

2009-09-10 08:43:00

Author:
JKthree

Posts: 1125

2009-09-10 08:44:00

Author:
wexfordian

Posts: 1904

Just to clarify, if someone has them on their hearted list, I can play them without anyone? That would mean the levels are on their servers and not the actual game right?

Does anyone have them all hearted?

Yup, but there's some x2 areas.

Also (i don't know if this only happens to me) some of the hearted 18 extra don't appear on their heart list.In my instance, Prisim Panic and when the cows go home are never both on at the same time.

But anyway me, zekeknight, and NuclearFish (who did Sprializer in the News section of Infomoon) have them all hearted.

Have fun Wexfordian

2009-09-10 08:46:00

Author:
JKthree

Posts: 1125

Thank JK, will do

2009-09-10 08:48:00

Author:
wexfordian

Posts: 1904

The prizes I think most were worth it. From the complexity of rz22g's tanks and gevurah's steampunk samarui (which made acing SO worth it), to the artistic of X-Nobody-X (I was kinda hoping jump_button had prizes

but oh well) to TangoCharlieESQ circles objects which make a great substitute for different colored stickers! And I still have to get them all (we need to make a guide or something)

Whoa, I'm impressed you aced it. Freaking congratulations man!

Even though I made that stage, I have a hard time acing it as well... (stupid Trigger). Enjoy the samurai! I put some hard love into making that thing. xD

2009-09-10 08:58:00

Author:
gevurah22

Posts: 1476

What is the deal with the prizes? I had community prizes switched off, but it still showed up as if I collected them, and then they weren't in the community prizes section. Do they live with story mode prizes and DLC then? edit - just saw mrvista's post above. If they are stored with story mode stuff then they won't take up profile space - they will be game data downloaded in that patch the other day - it shouldnt be an issue if you can't delete them TBH.

One thing I did notice is that you can't click "more by this author" - seems like a no brainer to me to add that as a feature...

I played a couple last night, and it just seemed that the creators really pulled out all the stops, really great stuff here. I'll be playing the rest over the weekend.

2009-09-10 09:22:00

Author:
rtm223

Posts: 6497

(I was kinda hoping jump_button had prizes

but oh well)

Well I did't really have anything useful to give away, and if any one to know I made my level between sackboy in skytown and black & white(that why it not that long).

I at the time I was sick of ppl say my level look nice but didt have alot of gameplay XD so I try hard to come up with same for this.

I think it going to looked dated when water come out but ^^;

2009-09-10 09:46:00

Author:
jump_button

Posts: 1014

Jump_button, I loved the gameplay in your level. The little puzzles and gameplay mechanics were really inventive. Nothing complex, nothing showy - just great, simple ideas implemented extremely well. Much like the way you took something as simple as jumping with a balloon and made it just perfect!

BTW, I remember the little guys holding balloons from some concept art you were asking showing off on this site

I was wondering what happened to those guys.

2009-09-10 09:50:00

Author:
rtm223

Posts: 6497

Just to clarify, if someone has them on their hearted list, I can play them without anyone? That would mean the levels are on their servers and not the actual game right?

I think they even came with the last update, not sure.
But here is an interesting fact for the EU guys out there:

I just got my new PS3 yesterday and it was still set to the default Dutch setting.(I always change it to English)
All the magic mouths were translated into Dutch just like the story levels wich kinda surprised me.

2009-09-10 13:22:00

Author:
Zwollie

Posts: 2173

I haven't played them all yet. Most I am really enjoying and impressed with! Many have used materials and decorations in ways I wouldn't have thought of. Foofles... is that an egg crate with MGS decorations on it? That's awesome!

I'm a bit surprised at how easy it is to get outside the play area on some of them, and one left me wondering if cooperative play was considered at all. But overall, there is a ton of fun to be had. I still have yet to play them all... can't wait to see the others!

I was angry and happy at the same time as the levels were long, which means more fun, but more rendering for the videos D:
I didn't feel mine is too long, really... but I did absolutely max out the thermo!

Unfortunately I can't edit them, not even to remove magic mouths or switches and it won't let me delete them either.
Did you try it with my prizes? I tested it out and found that I could edit them... maybe it's because I allowed people to do that, or maybe because they are still attributed somehow to me? I'm not sure. I did go out of my way to make my prizes be something useful, regardless of whether or not they could be edited.

Honorable mention, in the catagory for hardest to ace IMO include Blorf cause of those evil spiders...
I admit they look quite difficult, especially the last one, which is my favorite... but remember that you have three layers to work with... (and as a reward for getting past, you do get to kill that one!)

Blorf - this one totally surprised me since his Metal Revolution was fantastic, but at the same time not very casual-gamer friendly. His entry into this was the closest I've seen so far to a Media-molecule experience (including visible switches and mechanics) - and has some great humor.
The difference is that Metal Revolution was made only for me, but my GOTY level was made with everyone in mind. I didn't let that dissuade me from putting in a number of things that casual players probably won't find. I'll take the MM reference as a compliment... thank you!

2009-09-10 14:16:00

Author:
Risen

Posts: 251

I haven't played them all yet. Most I am really enjoying and impressed with! Many have used materials and decorations in ways I wouldn't have thought of. Foofles... is that an egg crate with MGS decorations on it? That's awesome!

I'm a bit surprised at how easy it is to get outside the play area on some of them, and one left me wondering if cooperative play was considered at all. But overall, there is a ton of fun to be had. I still have yet to play them all... can't wait to see the others!

I didn't feel mine is too long, really... but I did absolutely max out the thermo!

Did you try it with my prizes? I tested it out and found that I could edit them... maybe it's because I allowed people to do that, or maybe because they are still attributed somehow to me? I'm not sure. I did go out of my way to make my prizes be something useful, regardless of whether or not they could be edited.

I admit they look quite difficult, especially the last one, which is my favorite... but remember that you have three layers to work with... (and as a reward for getting past, you do get to kill that one!)

The difference is that Metal Revolution was made only for me, but my GOTY level was made with everyone in mind. I didn't let that dissuade me from putting in a number of things that casual players probably won't find. I'll take the MM reference as a compliment... thank you!
Yeah, the MM reference is definately a compliment - normally, when I see visible switches I think it looks hokey... but in this particular level not only were the visible switches aesthetically pleasing, but they were highly entertaining to watch - especially in the area where the sheep are being assembled by the machine and you have that whole little network of visible mag switches and keys.

And I think the thing that surprised me about the gameplay was mostly that you showed how flexible you are as a creator. It's not just that the gameplay is totally different than your earlier level, but that it was at the same time balanced perfectly for a different audience - something that is really unusual for a creator to pull off.

But, I think I'll always have special memories of Metal Revolution - it was the first level that really got me to think about gameplay mechanics in a new way.

By the way, since you don't have a lot of hearted creators on your list, the release of GOTY worked out REALLY well for me - suddenly my entire list of levels lit up and I got several hundred plays last night!!!!

Man I love this game.

2009-09-10 16:16:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

Risen, yours is one of the ones that I haven't played yet (i think), but I'll be sure to try it as soon as I'm able. Sounds good! ^_^

2009-09-10 16:32:00

Author:
xkappax

Posts: 2569

Played them all last night, my favourite three are Steampunk Samurai, Until The Cows Come Home and Bunnies In Space.

I think most of them are very good and definately GOTY worthy, but there are a few which to be honest I was dissapointed with. I was hoping for the overall quality to be much higher.

Also Snoy/Mm didn't seem to do a very good job testing them. I don't know about anyone else, but I recieved no feedback for my level (although I don't know if mine can be broken or if there's anything wrong with it. I hope not.)

I'm also surprised we're able to play them with the GOTY edition. So much for it being exlcusive. But I'm not complaining, because at least more people can play them now.

2009-09-10 16:49:00

Author:
Nuclearfish

Posts: 927

I hope to play all the GOTY levels this evening.

I still regret having such an emphasis on indoor shooting on my level... what do you guys think of my boss?

2009-09-10 16:54:00

Author:
Foofles

Posts: 2278

I liked your boss. It's not hard but the look is good and I especially liked the personality you gave him. The tantrum is priceless.

2009-09-10 16:57:00

Author:
Morgana25

Posts: 5983

CCubbage: Thank you very much! I appreciate the comments.

xkappax: I think you would remember the beavercows. Enjoy it!

Nuclearfish: I got one report for mine, but it was something that didn't happen at all on my console. (I don't even know how it would be possible with LBP's physics, so it was probably a difference in the debug build they were testing it with.)

I only got to play your level once, quickly... looked like a lot of fun though, I'm definitely going to play it again!

Edit: I have to ask... did anyone intentionally not fix the machines in my level?

2009-09-10 16:59:00

Author:
Risen

Posts: 251

@ Risen, YES! Those are egg crates with MGS stickers on them

2009-09-10 17:09:00

Author:
Foofles

Posts: 2278

Played them all last night, my favourite three are Steampunk Samurai, Until The Cows Come Home and Bunnies In Space.

If it means anything, I did not break yours, and I am notorious for accidentally breaking levels. ^_^ I am terrible at survival challenges, but rather enjoyed it.

I agree that sony didn't do a good job testing them. I broke 3 levels, as I said earlier, and there were parts of others where I found myself saying "this is a potential problem, why would they not give the creators some sort of feedback on this!?"

And Risen, i do not remember beavercows, so I'll have to try to play that one tonight. lol.

2009-09-10 17:10:00

Author:
xkappax

Posts: 2569

We didn't play the beaver cow one last night xkappax. I've played it though and from what I've seen it's cool. My group tried 2x to get through but with 4 it was very tricky..... I'll try it again tonight.

2009-09-10 17:21:00

Author:
Morgana25

Posts: 5983

Ok, I've just played Until the Cows Come Home, Bunnies in Space, The Tumbilizer (sp?), and I started playing gev's level...but kinds screwed up.

I've gotta say...holy crap those were amazing...

Until the Cows Come Home is incredibly similar to a level I never finished ages ago...yeah.

2009-09-10 17:37:00

Author:
ARD

Posts: 4291

I played some bits...I don't know the reason since the GOTY is USA only, but the levels are translated into Italian.

2009-09-10 19:21:00

Author:
OmegaSlayer

Posts: 5112

Zwollie told me that when we were playing the bubbles were in Dutch so yea, seems like it plays nice on non North American systems so far.

2009-09-10 19:26:00

Author:
Morgana25

Posts: 5983

If it's already translated into European languages, then it sounds like it was all ready to be released here. I wonder why it wasn't?

Also, found another problem showing a lack of Sny/Mm testing - at least one of the prizes (forget which) used the Killzone pack, so I couldn't use it. Considering that the Killzone pack isn't in the GOTY edition, you'd have thought they would have changed it or notified whoever made it.

2009-09-10 19:34:00

Author:
Nuclearfish

Posts: 927

I hope to play all the GOTY levels this evening.

I still regret having such an emphasis on indoor shooting on my level... what do you guys think of my boss?

Your level was great, and had a huge amount of comedy to it.

In all fairness, your boss wasn't really "a looker" - but given that we're dealing with comedy, he doesn't really have to be to feel like he fits in perfectly, to the point where that feels like a contrived criticism.

The boss was fun to fight, and the level as a whole was massively entertaining.

You've done a great job.

However, I should probably note that I blew through the majority of the level up to and through the boss fight without losing a life, if I recall, but I still did not reach the scoreboard ...

... because I kept getting killed by those purple-tail comets. It did feel odd that the biggest challenge to the level seemed to be after the "story" had actually "concluded".

Still had to heart it though - excellent work.

2009-09-10 19:38:00

Author:
Jagrevi

Posts: 1154

However, I should probably note that I blew through the majority of the level up to and through the boss fight without losing a life, if I recall, but I still did not reach the scoreboard ...

... because I kept getting killed by those purple-tail comets. It did feel odd that the biggest challenge to the level seemed to be after the "story" had actually "concluded".

Yeah, I just tried aceing it, hadn't lost a life until that point. It's my only critism about the level though, the rest is fantastic.

Shame nothing can be changed now...

2009-09-10 19:45:00

Author:
Nuclearfish

Posts: 927

I'm sorry about that guys... but thanks for the feedback!

I do guess it's a bit tricky, especially considering the camera angle.. I should have just spaced it out ever so slightly.

I actually made the boss before I made half of my level, I really liked the orbs revolving around him so I kept it.

The first thing I actually created was the little infinite bunny charge thing.

2009-09-10 19:57:00

Author:
Foofles

Posts: 2278

A few comments on a couple of the levels:

Ok, I thought the cows one by Geosautus was incredible... easily one of the best levels i've played.

The crystal one by nobody was good, and a great idea... it just dragged on a bit. (mind u, i have no idea how he fit all that gameplay in one level). loved the designs of the dragons too.

The Panda one, i thought was pretty cute but not outstanding.

The cat one... er what was that doing on the GOTY??? I would have rated that 2/3 stars on community! That maybe harsh but i would have happily created a level for this edition (and im sure that lots of other creators would) that could have been much better.

Bunnies in space was really good... funny and very creative. Just thought it was a little easy. Nice boss design though.

Tube Racer 2: Tbh i prefered the first one. Although i liked the idea of shooting the monster thing, i didn't manage to beat it after 4 attepts and well gave up.

Looking forward to playing Jump Buttons and Risens

2009-09-10 20:09:00

Author:
ladylyn1

Posts: 836

you can access the Game of the Year levels by easily going on the hearted list of people who have hearted these levels.

Can you tell me the name of someone that has done that? Or can you do it? Please

EDIT : Oops, looked through the thread and found some names. Thanks a bunch!

2009-09-10 20:50:00

Author:
Asbestos101

Posts: 1114

Ive done most, try mine

2009-09-10 20:54:00

Author:
ladylyn1

Posts: 836

Opinions from what I've played so far. On the whole, not too impressed. There's a few that deserve to be there, but others, I'm sorry but they just don't. The big thing that everyone has noticed is the severe lack of play testing that went on. Some of the levels are only just bordering on decent if you look at them as community levels let alone when you view them as levels that they were actually paid to build and to go on an official release. I know this probably seems a little harsh but I would expect every single level to be amazing if it's going into an official game. Here's what I've played so far...

Until The Cows Come Home

A very geosautus like level. Much the same style as Scary factory in the fact that you start in a normal place, end up in quite a dangerous mechanical situation and then get thrown back to your orignial surroundings. Great visuals, great gameplay. Definitely worthy of being on the on the disc.

The Tumblerizer

A nice survival challenge, I only had a quick go but what I saw was well done. Just a well made surival level really. Well paced. Adds a nice variety to the group of levels too.

Taklamakan 'Go and never come back'

Wasn't sure on this one in all honesty. Some of the gameplay was nice, the visuals however were pretty basic and nothing special. It isn't a bad level, I just don't think it is any where near worthy of being on the disc. I also escaped from the level quite easily.

Tales of the Little Big Crystal

Wasn't a fan of this either, some of the gameplay elements were quite nice (hiding behind the flowers) but the looks were pretty basic and on a number of occassions I had to pop myself after getting stuck. Again it's not a bad level, just not upto scratch with the likes of geosautus' (which I think is the benchmark of quality of what I would expect to see on the disc).

Prism Panic

I couldn't believe how basic this looked at the start, the idea of the visuals was quite good, a lot like the level B+W by Morrito, but the plain blue background is just an eyesore at the start, surely you'd think to do something about that for a level that is going out on an official release?! It felt like it could have used some kind of lighting effects on it. Maybe a fog colour or something. Some of the gameplay was good, some of it was a bit fiddly and got tedious. All in all the level was a little too long and it just wasn't engaging enough to justify the length.

Bunnies In Space

One of the levels that I felt truly belonged there. Really great visuals, fun, action packed. Just a really good level. I loved the fact that you don't have to shoot the bunnies a ridiculous amount of times to kill them like you do on most paintinator orientated levels. It can become so tedious and boring but with this a few shots and you got the massive explosions. Quite satisfying

Steampunk Samurai

I'm not going to talk about this one too much as I can see that it is a good level, but it's just not really my thing and I wasn't very interested in the whole samurai shooting thing. However, that says more about me than it does about the level so it's all good

Watermill Valley

Probably Jump_button's best. Same kind of style as usual with some good proper platforming in there. Nice and simple but very well executed. The enemies on balloons were really good too, a nice twist on your average obstacle. A few places felt like they could have benefited from a bit more decoration. Only other thing I wasn't so sure on was the waterfall...felt that it wasn't as good as some that are around today, that said, I appreciate that this level was made quite a while a go so it's understandable. Jump_button seemed like the odd choice for me when I seen who was picked, certainly not in regards to talent or ability, just in repetuation and such. Especially considering how long ago they were chosen. Saying that, it was an excellent choice as this is well up there out of the 18 for me.

2009-09-10 22:42:00

Author:
jackofcourse

Posts: 1494

Opinions from what I've played so far. On the whole, not too impressed. There's a few that deserve to be there, but others, I'm sorry but they just don't. The big thing that everyone has noticed is the severe lack of play testing that went on. Some of the levels are only just bordering on decent if you look at them as community levels let alone when you view them as levels that they were actually paid to build and to go on an official release. I know this probably seems a little harsh but I would expect every single level to be amazing if it's going into an official game.

I think more than talking about the levels specifically, I think the first thing we need to address, because I've heard the same language again and again, is what the purpose of these levels are.

There seems to be a general consensus in the community that these 18 levels are intended to be a showcase of the best the community has to offer - that the levels that are not up to par do not "deserve" to be there.

The more time I've spent thinking about it, the less I think this is the case, but rather a notion that we've invented. The purpose of these levels, I would put forth, is to give a sample of the various things that can be done, and are being done with the game - and in that respect I believe that the levels succeed in their goal in every reasonable way.

You have a vast range of quality, a vast range of genre - essentially, a way of showing that every person and every idea has a potential place in LittleBigPlanet. If not for personal satisfaction, I would say that it's actually in our best interest that not everything presented in the 18 levels is "professional level material".

If we assume the purpose of these 18 levels are to encourage new players to make their own - showing them 18 intricate masterpieces would actually hurt somewhat, as many/most would be unable to approach such quality, at least or especially at first, and then you have a discouraged base. Now, equally, if none of them were great, then that's not a very good advert for player creation either - but as it stands we have things to inspire, things to show off the game's versatility, and yes, even things to make new players go "well I could do better than that!".

Now I mostly withheld putting this view out there yesterday, because honestly when the thought first came to me it struck me as suspiciously ... "accomodationist". As if I were making an excuse that I could have applied regardless if not all the levels seemed "up to snuff".

However, I think the key thing to note as to whether these levels are "intended" to be an "elite showcase" or a "community sample" is the simple fact that MM specifically chose these creators, and we can presume based on evidence and logic not at random.

That all being said, I think the GOTY levels are pretty much exactly what MM wanted them to be with the best interests of the franchise in mind - which, honestly, should be more important to us in the long run than the quality of one particular 12 minute experience among a veritable endless sea of new ones.

2009-09-10 22:57:00

Author:
Jagrevi

Posts: 1154

I can see what you mean, but I'm not really sure that's what Sony were thinking when they chose the creators in all honesty (it was Sony not Mm by the way).

I think that could just be a way to dress it up now that some of the levels are a little below par. I can't honestly see Sony having a meeting saying 'right we need to choose some amazing creators and some alright creators so that the players don't feel too demoralised by playing such brilliance.'

No one wants creators to make 'just okay' levels so that it spares people's feeling about their own creations. The game just woudn't progress if that was the case.

Still I understand where you're coming from, it just feels like that is an easy evaluation now that we've seen the levels and some aren't so great. I'm sure that's the evaluation Sony will be going if they're asked to comment on it anyway/

2009-09-10 23:05:00

Author:
jackofcourse

Posts: 1494

@Jagrevi: You've obviously thought that argument out long and hard, but i dont fully agree with you... unfortunately i dont have the time to write something very long out...

but just remember that many people have paid a lot of money for this version of the game and if i had i would have expected only the highest quality levels to be in the 18 additional ones.

Im sorry there are some levels in the pack that dont live up to my expectations and thus i am quite glad i didnt purchase this edition of the game.

2009-09-10 23:07:00

Author:
ladylyn1

Posts: 836

A good post, and possibly accurate, but I still hold to the notion that these levels were produced possibly 4, 5 or 6 months ago, and in that time the community (including these authors) have progressed somewhat.

Of course, different people will have their own opinion on each level's merits, and they are quite entitled to them. My personal opinion hasn't changed from the second post on this thread - the actual quality ranges from very good, through indifferent, to quite poor. However, if these levels had appeared in February or March, they may have been reviewed slightly differently.

I think these GOTY levels show a wonderful side to LBP. A large corporation (SONY) and a small software house (Mm), asking 18 individuals to produce some levels to include on a special edition. Absolutely tremendous.

I adore this game, and the community of people it's allowed me to meet up with.

2009-09-10 23:11:00

Author:
MrsSpookyBuz

Posts: 1492

I think that could just be a way to dress it up now that some of the levels are a little below par. I can't honestly see Sony having a meeting saying 'right we need to choose some amazing creators and some alright creators so that the players don't feel too demoralised by playing such brilliance.

I think that's the main distinction here. That's exactly how I would imagine it would go - well, with the exception of your specific choice of language.

Remember the target demographics for this game - how would you market a "create your own level" game to young children?

Still I understand where you're coming from, it just feels like that is an easy evaluation now that we've seen the levels and some aren't so great.

I brought up that argument myself, but let's break down the two different argued possibilities.

1) Some of the creators of the "lesser" content created things that Sony truly thought were among the most amazing displays of talent, but they simply failed to perform. (worth searching their profiles if you think this is likely)

2) Sony, as a corporation, knows what it's doing here and chose creators not as game-players, but as people getting advise from marketing executives who would employ a course of logic similar to mine when marketing to children.

2009-09-10 23:12:00

Author:
Jagrevi

Posts: 1154

@Jagrevi: You've obviously thought that argument out long and hard

Eh - it passed my mind yesterday and I saw jackofcourse's post so I typed out a response. I haven't put so much thought into it that I'm overly convinced of my position.

but just remember that many people have paid a lot of money for this version of the game and if i had i would have expected only the highest quality levels to be in the 18 additional ones.

Im sorry there are some levels in the pack that dont live up to my expectations and thus i am quite glad i didnt purchase this edition of the game.

This is argument seems to be based soley on your expectations, rather than the question at hand - whether Sony was able to accurately evaluate these "lesser" content creators as just that.

No one is arguing that the levels may not meet your expectations, or even all of our expectations, but rather that those expectations - mine too, mind you, as I shared them - were foolish.

2009-09-10 23:18:00

Author:
Jagrevi

Posts: 1154

Some of your points are very valid and with no definitive answer being available I guess it just comes down to personal opinion. I can certainly see your side and it's definitely a possibility.

Your point about it being more about our own expectation that have let us down could be very true.
One thing I would say...

2) Sony, as a corporation, knows what it's doing here and chose creators not as game-players, but as people getting advise from marketing executives.

Sony's PR blunder with the 'celebrities' creating levels doesn't half take a few chunks out of the point...

haha

2009-09-10 23:21:00

Author:
jackofcourse

Posts: 1494

Sony's PR blunder with the 'celebrities' creating levels doesn't half take a few chunks out of the point...

haha

Touche'.

2009-09-10 23:24:00

Author:
Jagrevi

Posts: 1154

From IGN's brief review of the GOTY edition:

As if that wasn't enough, the exclusive creator levels are actually pretty cool. Bunnies in Space is chockfull of adorable rabbits you need to shoot to survive, having to fight a cat lady in The Cat Burglar is a nice story touch, and each of these creations is introduced by the player that made it. Sure, these lack the polish of a Media Molecule level -- I fell to a place I wasn't supposed to be able to fall to twice in the Goblin-Berg level -- but they are a pretty rad example of all the cool stuff you can do in this title's creation mode.

http://uk.ps3.ign.com/articles/102/1023181p1.html

I think one of the levels a lot of people are saying "doesn't belong in GOTY" is Cat Burglar. But looking at this, IGN seem to like it, and it's one of the only ones they mention, and they're praising it.

It seems like Sony chose people so that they would have as much variety as possible. We've ended up with survival challenges, races, tanks, flying samurai suits, exploding bunnies, long levels, short levels, puzzles, platformers, shooters, boss fights, different visual styles, story-driven levels, gameplay-heavy levels.... the list goes on. In fact the only thing we don't have is a bomb survival level, but fortunately there's enough of them on cool pages if anyone wants to play one.

Some of the levels aren't in the same league as others, but I think there's something for everyone to like in here somewhere.

2009-09-10 23:46:00

Author:
Nuclearfish

Posts: 927

In fairness aren't the GOTY levels supposed to be there so that people new to the game don't look at the cool pages levels and despair? I mean seriously, if that is your first impression of what create mode is about, then you probably won't bother.

Appologies to those of you with good levels on page 1 right now, but you understand what I mean.

.

2009-09-10 23:50:00

Author:
rtm223

Posts: 6497

The GOTY levels are there for people who haven't gone online yet, who haven't looked at what the community has to offer or published their own levels.

They're there to encourage people to get online and join the community, and possibly inspire them to make their own creations.

2009-09-11 00:01:00

Author:
Foofles

Posts: 2278

I will go ahead and put my two cents in. I never claimed to be a creator and I struggled to come up with anything for a level. It was requested that my tank be included so they obviously liked it and wanted it to be part of the 18 levels. I was also told when speaking on the phone that they were looking for a mixture of styles, although I was never told for what my level would be used. So whoever commented earlier that the levels were probably chosen to show a variety... you are correct.

Im sure Sony knows their market. They are probably very aware of how many current owners are most likely to go out and buy another copy of the game as well as how many would actually have the means to do so. If you think for one second that they are depending on current owners as the "target" buyers of this release then this is why you don't work for Sony

The 18 levels were not meant to please the current LBP owners/creators. They were meant to show the NEW players a variety of user created levels.

That being said... my level was never intended to be outstanding or amazing. With constant complaints of my current tank level, and a 3 star rating, I was amazed that I was chosen so my goal was to make the level they requested something simple for NEW players.

I will also go ahead and add... and I don't care who's cherrios I may be whizzing in... that some of the complaints about the 18 levels are probably legit but I can guarantee you that some are also due to the person making the complaint feeling like they should have been chosen instead. Just remember.. the creators did not lobby for this.. Sony chose them.

Now its out to the pool for some Vodka and Juice. I will check in later. Until then.... play LBP and have fun

2009-09-11 00:25:00

Author:
rz22g

Posts: 340

I've played a bunch more now, and really liked almost all of them. The only one that wasn't top-notch that I played was the cat one, but it wasn't HORRIBLE like some people seem to be saying. It was clearly intended as a very beginner level and it did pretty well for that.

Anyways, o-tera's level was amazing. I loved the style, and how it kind of contrasted the music, but everything fit in really well together. The points were expertly placed, and everything was fantastic.

Killermiller's level was amazing as well. Great art style, fun gameplay, and quite lengthy. The only quip I have is that some of the checkpoints could have been placed better so if you died you didn't go all the back to before a particularly challenging spot.

Blorf's cow level was wonderful and lots of fun. Again, great point placement, and very amusing.

I still haven't played geosautus' level along with a lot of others, so I'm looking forward to them! Like people have said, there are levels out right now that are better than these, but most so far are still really great and polished.

2009-09-11 00:54:00

Author:
hilightnotes

Posts: 1230

2009-09-11 01:03:00

Author:
SLS10

Posts: 1129

I played that cat level again today, and it is absolute garbage. I still can't believe this gets onto the GOTY Edition.

2009-09-11 03:07:00

Author:
TheFirstAvenger

Posts: 787

It's not absolute garbage... it's not very good, but remember that level is geared towards little kids.

2009-09-11 03:17:00

Author:
hilightnotes

Posts: 1230

Hehe, I like the polarizing opinions about some of the levels and the game in general. But seriously, this game is primarily catered towards individuals who haven't played the game yet, let alone have not jumped online.

We were all chosen within a particular timeframe by Mm which was supposed to capture a wide variety of creation styles. Mind you, there were more than 18 initially chosen, but we all had to go through a qualification process to see if our levels would be viable for the game... twice. If you really have an issue, then take it up with SCEE.

I can't speak for every creator, but I'm pretty sure they put a lot of time and effort into the levels they provided for the GOTY. I find it hard to believe that every person will enjoy all 18 levels (especially existing players), but... that's why there are so many. They all give new players a wide range of ideas of what can be done with the creation engine.

Sony and Mm chose these creators on their merits and abilities, giving them the opportunity to express themselves in a brand new setting with the understanding that they'll be influencing newcomers to go online and see what's out there.

And honestly, how many games can you think of have given the same kind of opportunity to players out there, regardless of skill level? Look at johnee for instance. Regular ol' player now Mm employee. Freaking awesome.

BTW, being on a deadline does add a little stress to creating a level. I'm pretty sure not all of us had an amazing amount of time to strictly devote to GOTY. Some people have children and families to take care of, on top of jobs and other important things that took precedence over spending 8 or more hours a day to building what you have in front of you.

When I was asked to join GOTY, I was recently promoted at my hospital on top of starting grad school. I didn't know how I was going to cope with all that to include seriously sitting down and building something that might not necessarily get greenlighted by SCEE. Hell, about halfway through the building process, I scrapped nearly everything about my stage and got really sick the last three days before the deadline. I'm sure others had to experience hardships along the way as well.

Looking back at my GOTY, there are things I'd love to change considering that was the first time I had used that format for my mecha. And yeah, the secondary ones kinda suck in comparison to the first... no thermo. xD In the end, my personal goal was to provide gameplay that you can't find anywhere else, on top of putting it in a setting that really isn't used much. Will everyone love it? Nope. I'm not big headed enough to think otherwise, plus I myself am a pretty niche gamer. But to those who do like it even just a bit, I feel like I've done my job. Even if they didn't like it, it helps give me a better understanding of what the audience wants and how to go about making future levels.

All in all, the experience has given me another needed kick in the pants to improve my creation abilities.

So... thank you to everyone who enjoyed my level and the same goes out to those who didn't. =P And I have enjoyed all the levels in some form or another. I may not truly love all of them, but it's cool seeing the different abilities of what they can provide for the community. =)

But let's not forget who this game is truly targeted to, and that's the future Sackboys and Sackgirls out there.

/rant

I had fun with the Cat level, lol. You save cats man. xD

2009-09-11 05:02:00

Author:
gevurah22

Posts: 1476

Am I the only one who seriously likes AntonioLadrillio's level the most? I mean, I really do dig the simplistic and free style that he employs, and the cultural influences are really neat.

I really enjoyed the style of that level. Great color - wild designs with a tribal flair to it. It's a very good level. Would I say my favorite, probably not, but it's still an awesome level.

2009-09-11 06:39:00

Author:
Morgana25

Posts: 5983

I was talking to Aardsy last night, and he was talking about how the people who were picked were chosen to show a wide variety of levels, too. I totally understand and respect that.

And I liked AntonioLadrillio's level, too, but I didn't have the same love affair with it that SLS10 had.

The mechanics were totally bizarre and off the wall, though, and I liked that a lot! Also, his creature design was great!

2009-09-11 13:16:00

Author:
xkappax

Posts: 2569

Well said, donkey show.

Real life was absolutely a factor. It's no secret now that I have a 2-year-old. Kratos4/rz22g is a father, too. Life is never simple. The other creators must have had similar obligations. It was hard to get it done, and harder to get it done well.

You should see my alpha. There's some interesting stuff developing... but wow... it's a completely different level. It was a clock tower to begin with! There was a conveyor belt you had to grab and ride underneath--but the physics engine did not want to keep it stable. Scrapped. There were a bunch of springboards that flung you all sorts of places--but they had a habit of killing you. Scrapped. There were some neat switches were you pulled a sponge and something happened, then let it go and the contraption would slowly reset itself--but it proved tedious and slow during play. Scrapped. The level moved almost entirely vertically--which allows less visibility in the direction that matters and makes things harder for multiple players. Scrapped. There were little mechanical mice running after you. Scrapped... although I think you can win one as a prize!

I saved some of the gameplay elements that worked, and the gothic-inspired architecture style that I'd spent some time researching, but that was about it. It was a full rebuild after that. (I still have it saved, if you're interested, heh.)

There are definitely things I would change on my level. For example, I don't like how the points reward at the end is just an emitted pile. I was running out of time and thermometer space, and that was better than no points reward at all. (I think the points reward delivery went in at about 4am on the morning of deadline.) There's other stuff, too. It's not as perfect as I would like, but I'm still happy with it.

I think they wanted to show a variety and there's nothing wrong with the cat level at all. It's cute, funny, and totally playable.

I'm less convinced that levels with bugs in them help anything, but it's pretty clear to me that it was a conscious decision to present the levels as-is and not run them though a professional production/polishing process. When you think about it, is that really a bad decision to make?

I don't think it's wise to make GOTY out to be a "celebrity creator" showcase. Celebrity? I don't even have the "Create" trophy yet.

2009-09-11 14:33:00

Author:
Risen

Posts: 251

I think I had just barely got my create trophy and my most popular level had just over 100 plays on it when Sony got in touch with me.

My Cosmic Conundrum level shot up to many hundred plays after MM put it on their blog.

2009-09-11 14:46:00

Author:
Foofles

Posts: 2278

I'm less convinced that levels with bugs in them help anything, but it's pretty clear to me that it was a conscious decision to present the levels as-is and not run them though a professional production/polishing process. When you think about it, is that really a bad decision to make?

There was some amount of a QA process, I know they contacted me for a couple major level breaking bugs in my level.

lol

2009-09-11 14:50:00

Author:
Foofles

Posts: 2278

Am I the only one who seriously likes AntonioLadrillio's level the most? I mean, I really do dig the simplistic and free style that he employs, and the cultural influences are really neat.

Gev's level was pretty neat, too, although the secondary samurai suits weren't as cool as the first one. The tank level was a fun romp, though I feel as though I busted up parts of the level accidentally - almost had to restart in one place, but very minor concerns.

I also LOVED the Cereal level. The epitome of humor, if you were to ask me.

The levels as a whole, that I've played, are really good. If only Sony would look at me and consider my work. xD Antonios level is good. Not as good as his level 'The Magic Carpet.' But with more time it couldve been twice as good. Anyone displeased with his style should remember that materials with 1 sticker on them take barely any thermo so that gives him room for more gameplay. Play the magic carpet and you'll get the idea

2009-09-11 15:08:00

Author:
Unknown User

I just corresponded with someone at Sony. I was inquiring about some issue with my level and the information I received confirmed something I have always believed, which is bugs are introduced into levels when they are placed online. The same applies for user levels being placed on disc. There is a section in my level where you set off explosives to lower two pillars and point bubbles are suppose to shoot up in to air and fall back down on the section of snow above the player. This part works without issue on the level I have on my moon, which is the same final submitted level I sent to Sony. There is another section where the same thing happens.

Not sure if things like that can or will be fixed. I played my level for the first time online yesterday and saw things happening that have never happened on my final submitted version and I still cannot make happen on it.

2009-09-11 18:23:00

Author:
rz22g

Posts: 340

That is really weird!

2009-09-11 18:46:00

Author:
Foofles

Posts: 2278

jump'a kicks butt. That water rising and falling with stones was genius!!!
foofles I will play yours later

2009-09-11 19:22:00

Author:
KQuinn94Z

Posts: 1758

Had a few replays of Beavercow's Insomnia, it's definately one my favourites. Ended up with a robot sheep twice (I need to do the 2 player bit still), and one time I deliberately didn't fix any machines and ended up with a pile of smelly fish.

2009-09-11 19:43:00

Author:
Nuclearfish

Posts: 927

Nuclear, I hate to tell you, but you can cheat in your GOTY survival...

2009-09-11 19:56:00

Author:
Trevor

Posts: 78

Nuclear, I hate to tell you, but you can cheat in your GOTY survival...

How??

2009-09-11 23:28:00

Author:
Nuclearfish

Posts: 927

I just corresponded with someone at Sony. I was inquiring about some issue with my level and the information I received confirmed something I have always believed, which is bugs are introduced into levels when they are placed online.

That's too bad. I don't see any bugs introduced into my level, but the timing of the gears in the gear tower is definitely a little off. It should be a much easier jump from the first rotating platform to the sponge with the point hanging off. It's still very doable though, so at least it's not a big deal.

Had a few replays of Beavercow's Insomnia, it's definately one my favourites. Ended up with a robot sheep twice (I need to do the 2 player bit still), and one time I deliberately didn't fix any machines and ended up with a pile of smelly fish.

Haha, thanks! There's seven possible endings. You can check how well you did with the status lights to the left of the "on" button at the end. The left side shows you which tasks were completed, and the right side shows what "score" that performance gives you. You can only complete five of the tasks in 1p mode... the sixth is the 2p area.

2009-09-11 23:31:00

Author:
Risen

Posts: 251

I just heard something interesting from x-nobody-x. Seems he played his GOTY level the other day and he said this to me :

"I was very surprised to see that media molecule didn't use my final version of the level. The one they put on GOTY is the one before all of my bugs were fixed! They must not have had time to swap it out or something"

So, maybe some of the levels aren't the completed versions and there was a mess up? Because I know that at least 3 had game breaking errors.

2009-09-12 13:19:00

Author:
xkappax

Posts: 2569

Hopefully they'll switch out these versions for the most updated ones some time in the near future. I personally haven't had any troubles with the GOTY levels, but I've heard enough to make it seem like it's a real issue.

2009-09-12 13:26:00

Author:
BSprague

Posts: 2325

Weird stuff... BTW! JHKthree Uploaded many vids of the GOTY levels on youtube.

Many thanks if you're reading this!

2009-09-12 13:48:00

Author:
Foofles

Posts: 2278

I must say that the levels I played (so far) were really awesome

I played The Cat Burglar and thought, "I could make this level!" Then I went into an emotional breakdown because I couldn't make a GOTY level.
My favorites (that I've played so far) are Blorf's level, Nuclear's level (although I suck at survival games) and foofles' level.

2009-09-12 14:26:00

Author:
iGotFancyPants

Posts: 1355

I've played so far Geosautus level, wich was awesome to the bone. And yes, that sums it all.

But in the other hand, Nobody's level was... dissapointing, at least for me. I dunno, it just didn't feel like if it was at the same level as the other ones.
I never played anything of this author befor, but -and I'm meaning no harm in here- I can't understand why he is in the GOTY edition if the single level I saw of his, it's his normal average.

Did anyone feel the same?

2009-09-12 20:49:00

Author:
Keldur

Posts: 628

You've never played XNX's levels? Used to be all over Cool Levels back in the day...

2009-09-12 22:45:00

Author:
ARD

Posts: 4291

The most disappointing thing for me is the prizes that to be honest are mostly crap. Especially Antonio ladrillo's. They are just a bunch of thin circles. The worst thing is they're all the exact same circle with a different sticker on. What's the point ? Anyone can make them and you only need 1 anyway and just put a different sticker on. Weird !!

Does anyone know did the GOTY creators get exclusive goodies aswell as getting paid because the sticker on XNOBODYX's pink snake is not one I've ever seen before. There are probably more but i haven't checked.

Another weird thing is that some of the prizes say they are created by whichever creator made the level but a lot of them say created by MM Studio !

Why is that ?

2009-09-12 23:01:00

Author:
mistervista

Posts: 2210

The plot thickens, guys. Apparently the another one of the levels is also not the final version that was submitted by the creator (forget which one). X-Nobody-X just told me that. I wonder what happened?

X-Nobody-X told me that something about the boss was different in his final version, and when he played it the other day, he was surprised to see that it was one of his earlier submissions.

2009-09-12 23:33:00

Author:
xkappax

Posts: 2569

LOL, they actually altered one of my hazards near the beginning of the level. It isn't gamebreaking, but I was pretty surprised they did that. It made the section totally non threatening, heh.

2009-09-13 00:20:00

Author:
gevurah22

Posts: 1476

Hmmm.. I don't *think* they changed anything in my level

2009-09-13 00:31:00

Author:
Foofles

Posts: 2278

The only thing I've noticed so far on mine is the missing level icon, but I haven't played it enough times to get all the different endings.

The most disappointing thing for me is the prizes that to be honest are mostly crap. Especially Antonio ladrillo's. They are just a bunch of thin circles. The worst thing is they're all the exact same circle with a different sticker on. What's the point ? Anyone can make them and you only need 1 anyway and just put a different sticker on. Weird !!

Does anyone know did the GOTY creators get exclusive goodies aswell as getting paid because the sticker on XNOBODYX's pink snake is not one I've ever seen before. There are probably more but i haven't checked.

Another weird thing is that some of the prizes say they are created by whichever creator made the level but a lot of them say created by MM Studio !

Why is that ?
- I did my best to make useful or fun prizes, but I'm sure they won't be everyone's thing.

- I did not get anything exclusive for the game whatsoever. No content, no tools, no development builds... didn't even get access to the beta that other people are in. I used the in-game editor with the add-on packs I already purchased, and supplied the level to Sony by copying the savegame to a USB drive and bringing to to another computer to attach to an e-mail. Is that sticker maybe part of an add-on pack you don't have?

- I don't have any answers for the last question. Sorry!

2009-09-13 18:12:00

Author:
Risen

Posts: 251

. Is that sticker maybe part of an add-on pack you don't have?

- I don't have any answers for the last question. Sorry!

Possibly but I've no way of knowing unless XNOBODYX can let me know where it's from.

2009-09-13 20:54:00

Author:
mistervista

Posts: 2210

2009-09-13 21:30:00

Author:
xkappax

Posts: 2569

Risen, I finally got to play your level this weekend. It was one of the best ones out of all of them. We took some pictures and uploaded them. I thought the mechanics were out of this world, the gameplay was fun, and it was just awesome. Great work!
I agree - I've played through just about all of them at this point, and Blorf's is definately in my top 3 (not to say its less than the other 2 - I like them equally) - it looks like he really took the project seriously. I've played through it twice.

2009-09-13 22:46:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

does anyone else think that the goty lvls arent very good besides me?

2009-09-13 22:54:00

Author:
ViDi--ViCi

Posts: 123

I'd say so. But I only looked at the previous posts so I wouldn't know.

Edit: Was that a bit mean?

2009-09-13 22:57:00

Author:
Syroc

Posts: 3193

does anyone else think that the goty lvls arent very good besides me?

*runs away and cries*

2009-09-13 23:25:00

Author:
Nuclearfish

Posts: 927

I loved the GOTY levels. I don't know what's with the people saying they weren't good. I thought some were better than others but there were a lot of amazing ones (including yours nuclearfish

)

I think my favourite one was Foofles'. It was just so hilariously fun. The explosions were awesome. The boss was awesome. The graphics were stellar. And the charge of the bunnies had me laughing for a long time xD

But yeh there were a lot of really great ones IMO.

2009-09-13 23:44:00

Author:
hilightnotes

Posts: 1230

*runs away and cries*

There there... there there...

*offers a handful of treats*

Don't worry, they're not poison. I'm not going to kill you and extract your level-making skills with a syringe in order to sell on the LBP market and label "Create Formula 101: NuclearFish Variety", and then use the money I make off it to buy 200 tons of Cap'n Crunch to fill up an olympic sized swimming pool that I can then swim in.

They're just... treats.

P.S. I'd like to get in on this GOTY level action. Who can I hit up to take me aboard?

2009-09-13 23:45:00

Author:
Teebonesy

Posts: 1937

You know, I gotta speak up here - I've been playing TONS of LittleBigPlanet levels since its release, and for about 6 months played darn near every level on our showcase for Spotlight crew review - I absolutely, positively do NOT think these levels are substandard. Many may not be some's cup of tea, but isn't that the point? To put together a really diverse set of levels?

I think most of these levels stand up easily against other levels in LBP. So far I've found the levels from Geosautus, Blorf, Gevaruh22, rz22g, foofles, nuclearfish, xnobodyx and jump_button to be highly entertaining and well-crafted levels.

But it all depends on what you're expecting them to be. I don't think MM were trying to create the "end-all-be-all levels in LittleBigPlanet that will put all other levels to shame". They're just trying to use experienced authors to show people what can be done with the tools - and they did a great job.

2009-09-14 00:40:00

Author:
CCubbage

Posts: 4430

I think Ccubbage is right. I'm coming around to the idea that Sony put together a set of levels that were meant to be diverse and give an idea about all areas of LBP.

I think it as soon as it came out that people had been CHOSEN by Sony, it's natural mentality to think 'Well these people must be who Sony think are the very best', as when you get the opportunity to pick something in life, it's natural to go for the best on offer.

While Sony could have been looking at it from a total different angle and just trying to get little pieces of everything LBP has to offer.

Although, looking at it from a more one dimensional view, the person who made that cat level...they got PAID to make that...real actual money...

2009-09-14 01:08:00

Author:
jackofcourse

Posts: 1494

As I stated in my post a bit back. I know Sony intended this to be a variety of styles. This was stated in those exact words to me when I spoke to them prior to committing to the project. So anyone that still doubts that is doubting it for their own reasons.

I questioned my level building ability to Sony directly prior to accepting and my tank was specifically mentioned when I asked what I should do. So while they most certainly did not pick me for my level building skills, they did feel my tank was a viable example of a vehicle that could be built in LBP.

I still cannot get over current LBP players feeling as if this title is targeted at them. Everyone on pins and needles about the 18 levels as if they were created for them when the title is obviously targeted at new players.

As for getting paid, each level brought to the table exactly what it was intended to bring, which was the style and talents of that particular creator , whether it be up to the standards of other creators expectations or not. The cat level has its audience. Not everyone that plays this game is a teen or above. My daughter loves the level as do her many friends in her age group that play it with her.

In all honesty it disgusts me to hear other creators question and complain about the situation. I had planned on donating at least 2 GOTY copies to LBPCentral to give away but it does not sit well with me to think that one of the whiners might end up winning one. Perhaps just one copy to reduce the chance of that happening. These people have really turned what was fun and considered an honor into a royal pain and embarrassment. Im tempted to just send it to RussellMuscle.

2009-09-14 03:05:00

Author:
rz22g

Posts: 340

Here are my mini reviews on a few levels, I'll post the rest when I have time.

Until the Cows Come Home by geosautus,

This is probably the second best out of all the GOTY levels, but certainly not the author's best level. I liked the gameplay and visuals, although certain parts (mainly when your in the Space Ship) looked really outdated when compared to more recent levels. 4 Star level.

Watermill Valley by jump_button,

Thought the level had great platforming and I also agree with some of you, it is the author's best level so far. Although the visuals were more of the same and nothing really new. Solid 4 Star level.

Turbo Racer 2 by xingyi,

Loved the first level, and always play it with friends, thought the intro of this level was really well done. One major flaw is the difficulty, you basically are in the vehicle for half of the level then there's the boss which can easily kill you, making you restart the entire level

4 Star level.

Stone by o-terra,

The first thing I noticed was it had no icon, how lazy can MM get to not even include an icon??? Even H4H and trophy levels include icons!

Very unprofessional, imo. The level was ugly to look at and the bosses weren't innovative in any way, I have seen those types of bosses done hundreds of times, and even better. The only thing I enjoyed about the level was the platforming. 3 Star level.

Prism Panic by Aardsy,

I walk into the level, seeing that hideous background staring at me. I can't get over it! Anyways, the level was pretty difficult but fun at the same time because of the gameplay. Although the visuals were an eyesore, it was still pretty fun. 4 Star level.

Evil Duckies by AchillesPDX,

H4H levels are better than this ****

The Tumblerizer by Nuclearfish,

Decent level, not really much to say other than it was pretty fun, visuals were good, but it did feel alittle too much like his Spiralizer level only with a few different tweeks. Solid 4 Star level.

2009-09-14 04:51:00

Author:
TheFirstAvenger

Posts: 787

2009-09-14 05:00:00

Author:
gevurah22

Posts: 1476

I know how you feel, but don't worry about it too much. We're getting too old for that crap.

Ultimately, we were chosen by Mm and we made these levels for newcomers to see. Let the e-opinion naysayers go along the wayside. We did our job and it's actually bringing in a lot of new blood into the mix. And besides, you ultimately get to chose who wins the prize, right?

What happens with the game is up to CC. I don't know what he has planned for it and I probably should not have mentioned it but I doubt its an issue. Im sure he will come up with something cool.

2009-09-14 05:21:00

Author:
rz22g

Posts: 340

Stone by o-terra,

The first thing I noticed was it had no icon, how lazy can MM get to not even include an icon??? Even H4H and trophy levels include icons!

Very unprofessional, imo. The level was ugly to look at and the bosses weren't innovative in any way, I have seen those types of bosses done hundreds of times, and even better. The only thing I enjoyed about the level was the platforming. 3 Star level.

That's funny - I actually really loved this level. I thought it had really great re-playability, really neat graphics, and fun gameplay. I love the simple but effective spike-enemies that are in the ground.

I'm really confused why so many people are being very 'picky' with these levels - not to say you're reviews aren't fair Echo. You're opinion is your opinion - but when did we stop giving proper constructive criticism on a level and start bashing any level we dislike?

I'm sorry, but did you (not you personally Echo - general you

) read the same thing I did? Did you read that these are 18 creators from the community, or did you read that these are MM studio levels? Did someone say MM level pack along the way?

Whether you think these level are amazing, good, or poor, it's completely and unjustifiably WRONG to tell these 18 creators who worked hard to produce levels in order to bring in new players to the game - players who might eventually become amazing creators or give some great feedback to your level - that their level sucks. Or their level doesn't deserve to be in GOTY. Every one of those 18 creators deserves to be in the GOTY for two simple reasons: 1) they were chosen to be in it by MM and 2) they put effort in to their creations in order to represent the community and LBP as a whole as best as they could to newcomers.
This is not the first rant to drive this point home, and good thing, because I know it will at least make me sad to know there's anybody on this forum who has the nerve to tell any of these creators - let alone any other LBPC creator - that they suck.

These 18 people have dedicated time they did not ask to dedicate in order to create their levels. They didn't create these to spite you. They didn't try to make your favourite level either. They made levels that they felt fit with the GOTY package. I loved most of the levels. That's great. Maybe I'm lucky. Whether or not we like these levels is only important if it's included with proper, constructive criticism on how a future level of theirs can be improved, just like we would do for a level in the "level showcase" section.
These levels are not geared towards us, and that's that. We weren't even expecting to be able to play these levels without buying the GOTY. Be happy you can. Enjoy what you enjoy, move on from what you don't.

Learn to be appreciative of what we get. You're allowed to expect certain things, you're allowed to complain if there's something about the game really bugging you. You've got freedom to speak on this forum.
But please just think carefully before you post, and remember that we're all in this together.

We all love this game, and we all love this fantastic community. We're all people with some degree of sense. Lets keep it that way.

2009-09-14 05:30:00

Author:
hilightnotes

Posts: 1230

Thanks for your opinion hilightnotes, I respect yours aswell.

And yes, I did read that these levels were being created by 18 members of the community, I never once expected them to be MM quality, never. But when I read that these authors were paid money, I can only expect them to make the best level they can, is it not fair that I expect this ? Having played all the levels now, I can honestly say that certain authors had better levels than their GOTY level, which to me is pretty disappointing. Also you make it sound as though I said these levels sucked, I have never used that word to describe these levels, I might have thought about it, but never said it. And I am appreciative that I get to play these levels, but am I not aloud to voice my opinion? Am I suppose to pretend like these are great levels? I also do think before I post, I constantly reread what I have typed down to make sure that what I want to be said is said.

2009-09-14 05:55:00

Author:
TheFirstAvenger

Posts: 787

Sorry, I didn't mean that rant to be geared towards you or anything. When I said "not you personally Echo - general you

" I meant that for the whole rant.

But no, you can't expect that.

a) The creators were under a tight deadline, rather than allowed the leisurely pace they might have taken creating a level in order to work out all the kinks.

b) Like has been said many times, these levels aren't geared towards you. They are geared towards new players. There's nothing wrong with you stating your opinion of the level as long as it's not outright rude. But you shouldn't be 'expecting' anything from these levels. Like I said, if you really loved them like me and many other people, great. If you didn't like them like many people, great. What really matters though is if new players can taste the power of LittleBigPlanet, and get into it, through these levels.

2009-09-14 06:08:00

Author:
hilightnotes

Posts: 1230

I think I can expect that they at least be good levels(which some GOTY levels didn't even manage to be decent), but that's my opinion.They were paid money, so that is why I believe this, heck if I were paid to make a level, I would make sure it would be one of the best, non glitch levels out there. Also, I know that the levels weren't geared toward us but to new players, people have repeated the same thing over and over. But when the newer group of people start playing all the great online levels that are out now, they will definetly see the difference. The only success I see that these GOTY levels will accomplish is to those that buy the game and will never connect online, at least they can get a taste of what community levels are like.

2009-09-14 06:25:00

Author:
TheFirstAvenger

Posts: 787

Don't get me wrong, I think the QC process could have been handled better but...

They were paid money, so that is why I believe this, heck if I were paid to make a level, I would make sure it would be one of the best, non glitch levels out there.

When you're on a deadline trying to make sure you come up with a level that might possibly be turned down by SCEE for a first time project that can affect a ton of new players instead of leisurely building a level at your own pace, let me know how that feels. It's easy to say you'll do that, but when you have a full time job, go to grad school full time, or even have to take care of your family (married but thank god no kids yet), it's a little more difficult to put those words into action. Of course this is not everyone's situation, but there are a couple of us who do more than just play LBP all day (no offense to those who do). Yet, I doubt any of us worked on this casually.

Like I said earlier, the feedback probably should have been a little more continuous after the deadline, but what you guys see is what you get. SCEE gave the green light to these levels in the states that you see them and probably should take a little heat for some of the "glitches" found. But to think we didn't work our butts off to make these levels as optimal as possible (quality not withstanding) feels like an insult. It's easy to say, "you would've, could've, should've," but once you're in the hot seat, it's something else. Hell, I hated LBP for a little bit as I was making this.

The only success I see that these GOTY levels will accomplish is to those that buy the game and will never connect online, at least they can get a taste of what community levels are like.

And you know what, that's exactly what's happening right now. Other forums I've post at promoting this version have had people wanting to go online and do their thing after playing these levels.

I played the cat level with my little cousin today and **** is it a fine level for kids her age. I basically looked at her dad and went, "you know what to do." Heh.

2009-09-14 06:38:00

Author:
gevurah22

Posts: 1476

Still haven't played all of these, but I did get a chance to sit down and play through a whole wack of them today.

I have to say that I had a great time. There was one or two times where I got cornered and had to restart... I think it was Stone or In Search where I had to restart due to a winch getting stuck.

I even noticed dark matter holding up a background in NOBODY's level. But holy crap, his level also managed to absolutely blow me away. I don't think I've ever played a level where I was more stunned at how they fit everything in considering the thermometer. This level has such a ridiculous variety of environments. The intro is one of my favorites in the game to date. The transition from the city to the dream world was incredibly well-done. Blown away.

Steampunk Samurai was EPIC. It was a gorgeous level, dripping with style, and in classic gevurah fashion, ends with a massive, incredibly detailed boss. Few other creators manage to make their levels feel as epic as gevurah. I also loved that the two types of samurai armor at the end handled differently, had different weapons. I tended to do better with the quick-shooters, and definitely had a bit of trouble aiming here and there, but it was always fun to dive back in with that massive, awesome-looking end boss.

The Beavercows' Insomnia level was one of my favorites - even though most of the gameplay in it isn't really my thing - but I'm compelled to play through it again to see what other sort of "toys" I can get the machine to create in the end. I ended up with a bunny that moos. It was an incredibly, even ridiculously clever level.

Until the Cows Come Home was "udderly" spectacular. HHAHAHAHAHA.
that's my review of that one.
No but seriously, another level with a fantastic "transition" between themes, and I just loved every minute.

Stone was so well paced. It's rare to come across a level like that actually, one where you can just FLY through the whole thing, and something exciting and interesting is constantly happening. for my money the guy nailed the difficulty and crafted a handsome, fast paced stage.

Tumblerizer and Tube Racer I've essentially played before, in different incarnations, and of course they're still fun here. I totally screwed myself on the paintenator segment of tube though. The only problem with that one is that when restarting, it takes forever to get to that part again.

Watermill Valley... My jaw was hanging open the entire time at the look of this level. Jump_Button's levels all seem to exist in a consistent world, and I can't get enough of the place. I love all the ragged wooden suspension platforms, all the crooked, broken down, rotting constructions. The color palette, the style, it's just gorgeous. nobody's EVER gotten better use of a plain blue sky background before. Some great gameplay too. The flooding room with the paintenator bombs was very clever.

Cat Burglar. Definitely something different... Very easy obviously, not a level designed to push you around. But if Sony commissioned 18 levels, you'd certainly hope there'd be a difficulty curve, and you could rate them all on a scale of 1-18. I admit though, I just couldn't help but contrast this level with the others I had just played - Gevurah's, Nobody's, and Geosautus' in particular. These were all massive, epic levels with a spit-polish. So it seems a bit lacking when put side by side with them, but as donkey show mentioned, this level's obviously the one rated at "1" on the difficulty scale. Great for kids, newcomers. It's a wee cute level. In any littlebigplanet variety, you'd want at least one "wee cute" one, wouldn't you? and I have to admit, after braving the treacherous dangers of Watermill Valley and some of the other levels, it's kind of a relief to play a simple little straightforward level where the biggest thing you really have to worry about is a couple of squeaking mice who can't even kill you.

Overall I had a good time in every one of these. I'll have to come back once I've played the rest.

And as for the current debate about quality, I'd throw my pennies around:

This is a seriously unprecedented move. LBP is a major pioneer in the create genre. So this exclusive-community-content thing in the GOTY edition has never had a precedent in the videogame industry as far as I know. Certainly not on this large of a scale. I wouldn't doubt for a SECOND that Sony could have easily gotten away with not paying the creators a dime. I'd bet the levels we would see would probably be the same as what we have now if that were the case.
I'd consider it a bit of a sleaze move on Sony's part though - I'm glad they paid the creators, it was the right thing to do. On the other hand, considering the amount of money that goes into videogame budgets, particularly high-profile ones, they could have easily gotten away with paying each creator a real decent chunk of change. Which, considering this is a first, they probably didn't do.

I'm just not sure it's fair to be too vicious with these levels just because the creators got paid - consider the cirumstances.

There's no real OPTION - Sony picked a handful of creators very early on in the game, and made an offer none of them could really refuse. "Do what you normally do, but get paid for it". Who would turn it down? Unless you were insanely busy in real life, it's highly unlikely.

If there was some option - if we could apply for a "get paid to create" account, and all of LBP's community levels were split into 'regular' and 'platinum' levels, I think then we could be having a real discussion about the quality of these 'platinum' stages. And I also think LBP would be going the way of Rapture, so thank god it's not the case. But right now, we've got a completely unprecedented move, and clearly Sony could have made some better choices and handled things differently. But all in all, this is a huge step for the create genre, and I consider it a pretty big milestones for videogames in general. Nit-picking the quality of the levels I think is a bit beside the point.

2009-09-14 13:46:00

Author:
Teebonesy

Posts: 1937

[nice things]

[nice things]

[nice things]
Thank you all. I put a lot of time and effort into it and I'm really happy you're all enjoying it.

*runs away and cries*
While I'm fairly certain you're not being serious, I played your level last night with three people for probably an entire hour. We claimed the 4p high score and uploaded a pic! It's a seriously fun level.

2009-09-14 14:14:00

Author:
Risen

Posts: 251

While I'm fairly certain you're not being serious, I played your level last night with three people for probably an entire hour. We claimed the 4p high score and uploaded a pic! It's a seriously fun level.

And we had a blast, too!! : D I'm loving the Bonus levels so far. My wife and I have played a few of them, still need to get to some more. However, when she and I got home from Risen's place, we sat down and tried to beat Risen's score on Nuclearfish's level... which we failed pretty hard at. : P

All in all, I've been pretty pleased with the few I've seen so far. Not all are my style, but they all have interesting game play elements, and that is the type of thing I've really been looking to see innovation in. Well done everyone!

2009-09-14 16:14:00

Author:
Inspectigater

Posts: 126

But when I read that these authors were paid money, I can only expect them to make the best level they can, is it not fair that I expect this ?

No its not fair. You assuming and insinuating that certain creators did not do the best they could do and that is just pure speculation on your part. Your using the payment as the deciding factor for the level outcome. Payment is beside the point. It does not give you new ideas, abilities or make your level easier to create. If anything it adds pressure. I have not doubt that every creator did they best they could in the situation.

Having played all the levels now, I can honestly say that certain authors had better levels than their GOTY level, which to me is pretty disappointing.

Again your viewing this from a player that has had the game, played the creators levels and have expectations of that creator. Its very possible the GOTY level they see will be the first level they see from that creator. That does not mean it has to be the best level that creator has ever made.

They were paid money, so that is why I believe this, heck if I were paid to make a level, I would make sure it would be one of the best, non glitch levels out there.

Speculation. I do not doubt you would do everything you could to make it glitch free. This creating experience was nothing like creating on your own time with no restrictions. We relied on beta testers for feedback. Under contract you were not to mention the project to others. While Im sure information went to some family member, its not like you could publish your level online and get other players to jump in and test it out on a regular basis to help find issues. I have tested previous levels for nearly 100 runs with no issues and once published things would happen regularly that never happened when playing it on the moon from my pod. Sony confirmed this happened to some of the GOTY levels.

2009-09-14 18:49:00

Author:
rz22g

Posts: 340

Yeah, the beta testing thing is actually huge - From my own experience, most of my bugs and tweaks happened after publishing. I'd have people leave comments saying "sleigh is broken", "trolley broke", "elevator broke", "i fell through the floor at X", etc. That's how I polished up the issues, by fixing up areas where people left feedback.

With the GOTY levels, essentially once they're published, that's the end-all-be-all. If there's any problem with it, you can't as a creator tune it up at all.

2009-09-14 22:33:00

Author:
Teebonesy

Posts: 1937

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