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Death Swamp

Archive: 40 posts

Death SwampRangerZero
This is the last day of training for Sackboy. If he succeeds this last test/exam, he might be accepted in the AJS (Army Of The Jumping Sacks). But it will not be an easy test that's for sure because it's a course held in the famous "Death Swamp". Yes, the place where many Sackboys died for real...
What is it?

This level is meant to be single player experience and his for intermediate and experienced players. You can play the level casually or you can practice in order to achieve the bubble combos. There's a lot of points to be made in there and in multiple ways. The experienced and skilled player should not only pull off tons of combos (and long ones too!) but also score much more than a beginner. The levels will rewards the player in points for his skill, observation sense and exploration sense too. It's also pretty straightforward and a pure platformer at heart. People that don't really love the plane shifting will also be pleased to see that it plays mostly on one layer. So, to make a long story short:

Points of interest:

- Pure platformer game at heart.
- Swamp theme (actually was inspired by Donkey Kong Country 2).
- Play casually or go for the highscore challenge. (hard)
- 8 piles of gold to find + more secrets (all reflected in your score)
- Almost a one layer level.


Screenshots:

http://www.lbpcentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21582

http://www.lbpcentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21585

http://www.lbpcentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21578

http://www.lbpcentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21581

http://www.lbpcentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21583

http://www.lbpcentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21579

http://www.lbpcentral.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=21584


Don't shy up on feedback. I've been planning that level last spring and then I stopped playing this game. I knew I would finish it at some point and it's for you guys/gals (LBPC) that I did it. I won't publish it much, I prefer the quality plays from the community here.

Have fun!!



--------------

Thanks to Shamgarblade, CCubbage, OmegaSlayer and GhostRider for testing/feedback.		2010-08-11 07:40:00

Author:
RangerZero
Posts: 3901

Looks and sounds great!
Fix the "alot" typos and I'll play/reivew it ASAP!

+ The grass and the ground being on one shape makes it look very natural. I might have to steal that.
+ Reeds are awesome. There are not nearly enough reeds in LBP.
- I don't like the camera after the 2 broken reeds (with failsafe). It's too hard to land on the small piece of dock after the collasping bridge, as the camera moves mid-jump.
- I could never get the timing right for the high bubbles on the grab/bouncy pads.
+ Rotating sunken spike wheel was awesome gameplay.
+ When I got to the Thing material I thought..."That's no moon.." Ha.
- You miss out on a lot (note the spelling ) of gameplay if you miss the jumps on the turtle. Better on replays though, which I suppose is the point.

Plays like an old school platformer with the difficult gameplay and the sparse checkpoint placement. Something LBP needs more of.
Hearted for replayability.
Just replayed, gold is hard to find.
5 stars + heart from me.

F4F link (https://lbpcentral.lbp-hub.com/index.php?t=12795-F4F-quot-sound-n-space!-quot-An-experiment-in-navigating-via-sound-%28with-pictures!%29)		2010-08-11 10:16:00

Author:
midnight_heist
Posts: 2513

:star::star::star::star::star: and <3 fantastic level 2010-08-11 10:58:00

Author:
jrg_carrion94
Posts: 18

I just played your level & heres my feedback

Positives:
+Swamp theme was awesome
+Gameplay
+Background Sticker
+Platforming
Oh and the level wasnt hard it was more like medium by the way

Overall nice job::star::star::star::star::star:
F4F My level Comix Zone:Night of The Mutants		2010-08-11 11:59:00

Author:
Sabre_
Posts: 653

Wow! Looks to be an amazing level! I cant wait to see it when i get to my PS32010-08-11 13:58:00

Author:
grayspence
Posts: 1990

Fix the "alot" typos and I'll play/reivew it ASAP!
- I don't like the camera after the 2 broken reeds (with failsafe). It's too hard to land on the small piece of dock after the collasping bridge, as the camera moves mid-jump.
F4F link (https://lbpcentral.lbp-hub.com/index.php?t=12795-F4F-quot-sound-n-space!-quot-An-experiment-in-navigating-via-sound-%28with-pictures!%29)

I have some "alots" in the speech bubbles too maybe? I will look into that.
As for the cam of that Cattail section, it should be easy to fix. I will adjust it. thank you 		2010-08-11 14:05:00

Author:
RangerZero
Posts: 3901

Looks great. I'll play it soon.

YAY and WOOT for mainly one layer. I hate layers so this should be great for me. Apart from hunting for secrets that is. I hate that too, can't be bothered or see the point.		2010-08-11 14:18:00

Author:
mistervista
Posts: 2210

Looks pretty!
I'll give it a shot when I'm online!		2010-08-11 14:22:00

Author:
javi haguse
Posts: 744

I have some "alots" in the speech bubbles too maybe? I will look into that.
As for the cam of that Cattail section, it should be easy to fix. I will adjust it. thank you
Haha, no I meant in the OP of this thread, but they have been fixed, yay!
Thanks for fixing the camera also. It's a fun level to replay.		2010-08-11 14:23:00

Author:
midnight_heist
Posts: 2513

Great level! It looks great, its a good difficulty, even if at times it had me respawning over and over I gave it five stars!2010-08-11 14:31:00

Author:
chimpskylark
Posts: 335

Best use of real water in LBP. I love the theme and overall great detail in the level.

:star::star::star::star::star: and <3		2010-08-11 15:00:00

Author:
SnakeEater777
Posts: 19

Looks great. I'll play it soon.

YAY and WOOT for mainly one layer. I hate layers so this should be great for me. Apart from hunting for secrets that is. I hate that too, can't be bothered or see the point.

Well, of course finding stuff is optional. I try to put more than one goals in my levels so different people can like to do different things. You might want to try and pratice combos, raising a great score. It's possible to score over 25 000 in there!


Haha, no I meant in the OP of this thread, but they have been fixed, yay!
Thanks for fixing the camera also. It's a fun level to replay.

I am happy that the camera works good for you now.


Best use of real water in LBP.

:star::star::star::star::star: and <3

Really? I am flattered by this comment. I actually thought water wasn't used enough as a hazard and thought it was a good idea. I am really happy that you like it. 		2010-08-11 17:49:00

Author:
RangerZero
Posts: 3901

I got the Highest score!! I'm sure that will all change soon though............2010-08-11 22:29:00

Author:
SnakeEater777
Posts: 19

Great stuff, man! Love to see a new RangerZero level - you definately have a style all your own!

This one DEMANDS multiple plays to appreciate it. There are even a few tricks to learn that I hadn't seen before, such as grabbing to pop in the air, and mastering the "jump" at the same to to maximize height and find new areas.

Visuals are kept simple, but have a nice style.

Missed opportunities while playing force going back and trying again - which is nice for replay value.

Awesome job! 5 stars and a heart. Will be playing it more in the coming days.		2010-08-12 03:45:00

Author:
CCubbage
Posts: 4430

That was great! Simple, straight-up platformer! You said single player only, but it works fairly well 2P as well.

Loved the cattails, the turtle, and the scenery in the background. The theme and feel of it was quite good.

:star::star::star::star::star: and a <3!

If you like, please leave feedback on my level: Commander Keen: Goodbye Galaxy - Part I (https://lbpcentral.lbp-hub.com/index.php?t=32124-Commander-Keen-Goodbye-Galaxy-Part-I)		2010-08-12 04:35:00

Author:
Ryhas
Posts: 179

Another great level by RangerZero, a guy that doesn't flood LBP with levels, but has always something very interesting and unique to say.
First of all the mood is great and the level is challenging.
There's a cool use of the layer glitch, I like it really much.
I played it several times, to go for the quick run or the tresure hunting and always had great fun.
Thanks buddy!
Oh 5 stars and a heart obviously.		2010-08-12 09:56:00

Author:
OmegaSlayer
Posts: 5112

Thanks for all your good comments!

Now I am curious if some people will find more about the level... there's "stuff" in the level that nobody talked about...



RangerZero, a guy that doesn't flood LBP with levels.


Yeah, especially this year (my only level this year lol). It takes so many hours and there's so many games
out there... 		2010-08-12 17:49:00

Author:
RangerZero
Posts: 3901

Great level you got there, I played it many times (I managed to die only twice after playing it *cough*thirt *cough*een *cough* times...). I'm pretty much too lazy to write whole sentences with dots and commas, so, here's what I'm gonna say :

+ Plus +

- Great visuals.
- Hard but enjoyable challenges.
- Clever secret areas.
- Important replayability.
- No lag with buddies.

- Con -

*Cough*

I liked it alot 		2010-08-12 20:07:00

Author:
Oddmania
Posts: 1305

Very wonderful stuff, Ranger. I enjoyed it very much, and after having played with a group of 4, I went back to play a few more times and claim the top spot. I annihilated the second place score.

I found all the secrets, although not all at once. On my last run, I found all but one stack of gold. On me second-to-last, I found all but one X. And looking back, I remember which gold stack I missed on the last one... grrr.

If I had a complaint, it would be that some of the brain-bouncy enemies have too large a gap between them... enough to make the secret-gets frustrating. Luckily for us, though, they were made out of grabby material, so I could just swing on them. Also, I got your last gold secret through nontraditional means. I had to cheat a little because it was really unclear what to do with that unlockable jump pad until I managed to break it on the turtle's neck.

All in all, very enjoyable. :star::star::star::star::star: and a <3		2010-08-13 15:08:00

Author:
comphermc
Posts: 5338

If I had a complaint, it would be that some of the brain-bouncy enemies have too large a gap between them... enough to make the secret-gets frustrating. Luckily for us, though, they were made out of grabby material, so I could just swing on them. Also, I got your last gold secret through nontraditional means. I had to cheat a little because it was really unclear what to do with that unlockable jump pad until I managed to break it on the turtle's neck.


Wow! tks for the feedback. I totally didn't mean those to be grabbable! ... terrible overlook on my part
To bump on those brain successively you need momentum. You need to be running and keep going right. I also hold down the jump button (ala Mario Bros) because I think you go higher this way. I'm gonna test this tonight. Anyhow, those flying ennemies aren't mean to swing you and they are also meant to be something requiring much skill. I do bump successively on them with ease but I suppose it doesn't count since I created that level 		2010-08-13 15:23:00

Author:
RangerZero
Posts: 3901

In fairness, I find myself pretty confident with brain bouncing (see two of my levels), but I honestly could only muster up enough bounce on one of them. I understand that momentum is important, but given that that sequence is a one-shot or you lose scenario, there does need to be a little leeway. That said, one of them is bypassable without the swing. In the part where you have the angled ramps that move up and down in the water (bad explanation, apologies), you can use the upward motion of the skinnier one behind to reach the gold back on the left tower. I got it both ways, thinking that this cheat of a way was the intended solution at first.

As for the last gold stash, I was able to corner jump onto the incline on the tower to the left, and then make the gap across to the right.

2010-08-13 15:31:00

Author:
comphermc
Posts: 5338

Just now I e-mailed David Wise, composer of the DKC games and I wrote that if they couple LBP with his music we will have a game of the ages. Probably won't lead anywhere but we can dream.2010-08-13 15:46:00

Author:
BasketSnake
Posts: 2391

As I said before, this level is wonderful! I played it over... and over... and... over... until I achieved first place! BOOYAH!!!! That level never gets old! To me, it is truly a masterpiece!

The environment is wonderful and if you know what you are doing, you can get some pretty sick combos in there!

There is only one part that gets on my nerves... Especially when I was shooting for first place: The alligators... You have to jump on them perfectly in order to get off of them on time! Those things killed me multiple times.

But yeah. Awesome level. I'll have to show it to some of my friends!

:star::star::star::star::star: & <3		2010-08-14 01:30:00

Author:
ShamgarBlade
Posts: 1010

Ok so I've published a new version tonight with multiple fixes.

- Camera ajusted right before the first set of crocodiles.
- New decorations like more Army of The Jumping Sacks' logos.
- Tweaked both brain bouncing sections to make them a bit more forgivable.
- Moved away some Gold that you could collect in a way I was considering as cheat.
- The level now bears the logo from the winner of the badge contest.

2010-08-14 04:41:00

Author:
RangerZero
Posts: 3901

21850, Aced. Very little room for improvement. 2010-08-14 15:59:00

Author:
comphermc
Posts: 5338

Darn. Hahaha, comphermc, why did you do that? Now I gotta go back and play it another 200 times!!!2010-08-15 01:40:00

Author:
ShamgarBlade
Posts: 1010

Hey Ranger!
I liked this level - it looked really good, and made great use of the background glitch and the water. I loved the swamp things, and the monsters which you used their brains to jump with - unfortunately, I didn't get to complete the level. There's a part near the beginning where there's a raised platform that goes up and down, and there's a singly flying monster which you use to jump over to the next side. I failed on my first attempt, and when I got there again, there was no way of getting back across, because the monster was gone. This could be solved by simply remitting it, which could be linked up to a one shot sensor at the checkpoint, so if you fail, you can try again. Played a couple of times, and couldn't get across so I gave up - sorry! If you fix this, let me know!

One thing I did notice - at the beginning there's a jump bounce pad thing with a string of points leading up. I think I jumped too high - and noticed some visible dark matter up there. Nothing wrong with it - just I guess I wasn't meant to see it...

Great level from what I saw. Would love to give it another go if you fix that part!
Well done!

If you wanna leave me some feedback - try out my level Mining Mishaps - links in my sig!

2010-08-15 23:14:00

Author:
standby250
Posts: 1113

There's a part near the beginning where there's a raised platform that goes up and down, and there's a singly flying monster which you use to jump over to the next side.


Oh, that one between 2 gray moving platforms? (moving up and down I mean)
If it's that on you're supposed to actually respawn into the last gray platform. When you fall in the water there, the next checkpoint activates. Or maybe it didn't?
Anyhow, I'll go take a look to see if it still work, tks for telling me

I hope you try the level again, and don't worry, there are "fail safe" stuff for each part so you still can get across when you miss.		2010-08-16 04:45:00

Author:
RangerZero
Posts: 3901

Really great level Ranger! Wow.. scenery to the max on this one!! I really love the use of the stickers in the background as well as some other common pieces to really make the thing pop. Quite the challenge as we are used to expect from one of your levels, but oh so enjoyable and really liked all the varied platform pieces throughout, yet keeping the common theme.

I dare say maybe my favorite one of yours yet!!! Awesome work and so glad to have you back creating again!! 		2010-08-16 22:24:00

Author:
jwwphotos
Posts: 11383

Ranger! You really surprised me with this one. Not that I don't expect great levels from you...just that I didn't expect A level from you Anyway, got to play it a few times both single and multi and I think it's great. My scores were meh but they'll get better as I get a chance to really have at the combos. I can't think of any negatives and I love the theme, the challenge, the pacing and the feel of this one. Personally I think it's your best and I'll be playing over and over again. Bravo.2010-08-17 00:33:00

Author:
Jaeyden
Posts: 564

i played this a few times with different people. you still make the most involving and replayable levels. always fun and challening. can't wait to see what you do with lbp22010-08-17 16:25:00

Author:
Unknown User

I dare say maybe my favorite one of yours yet!!! Awesome work and so glad to have you back creating again!!

Tks man. I sure can feel the LBP love around here! This is free fuel for creating.


I can't think of any negatives and I love the theme, the challenge, the pacing and the feel of this one. Personally I think it's your best and I'll be playing over and over again. Bravo.

Thank you, I always perceive you as an experienced creator and it's an honnor when you appreciate my stuff.


you still make the most involving and replayable levels. always fun and challening. can't wait to see what you do with lbp2

Tks again, thank you all!! It's so awesome that many old members of the community are still here participating, playing, and sharing. You guys all make my day when I realise you had fun because of me. Only a couple of comments and I feel so gratified!! Like each level that I publish, I always have that fear you know, that fear to be alone and that nobody might like what you expressed. I suppose it's a common feel for artists and/or designers. Anyhow, this game is magic. No other game can bring me such positive feelings!!

2010-08-18 04:36:00

Author:
RangerZero
Posts: 3901

That was a great and challenging level. The platforming obstacles are ingenious and difficult and the collecting gold secrets are clever too. The visuals gave this level a swamp feeling and characters like the cyclop dragonflys and the giant turtle looked great. I know this is a hard level but you should think of adding more checkpoints so that I wouldn't keep on doing the same challenging obstacles over and over again. Excellent work. 5:star:s and a <3

By the way, whats with planet Earth somewhere in the sky of this level? Are we in an alien planet? Anyways play and F4F "The Hero Chronicles LV6 Sky Metropolis"		2010-08-19 03:45:00

Author:
JustinArt
Posts: 1314

Some facts about the level...


1- It took something like 30 hours to make this level.

2- I wouldn't be surprised it 10 out those 30 hours were for tweaking everything.

3- At first my background was 3D but it took so much thermo that I had to make it a sticker.

4- People finally discovered that they can swim in the swamp! It's only with your head under water that you die.

5- There 2 different planets in the sky of the level. Did you see them both?

6- There's an "easter egg" in the level that is yet to be found. We need real explorators!

7- It's possible to score more than 25 000 points in the level.

8- I only republished the it for fixes/tweaks (9 times) and it reached the second page of Cool levels and 5200+ plays.
(star rating is borked on the servers right now though)


2010-08-19 07:15:00

Author:
RangerZero
Posts: 3901

Fun by yourself, funner with a friend, funnest with more.

Absolutely brilliant. So hard, so rewarding.

:star::star::star::star::star: and a <3		2010-08-21 13:46:00

Author:
talbot-trembler
Posts: 1114

I updated the first post with credits. Some people gave me some feedback/testing before I published the level.
I said I wanted to put you in the level's description so I will go look into that today. If ever there's no place well, your credit will be mentionned here anyways.



By the way, nobody found the Death Swamp inhabitant?

...		2010-08-24 00:37:00

Author:
RangerZero
Posts: 3901

Death Swamp inhabitants? You are going to make me play this another 100 times aren't you... Why oh why did you make it so addicting!?2010-08-24 00:44:00

Author:
ShamgarBlade
Posts: 1010

Well that was quite tough, but very enjoyable. I actually surprised myself with a semi-decent score! I found myself cursing everytime I missed a bonus route or combo opportunity and I can see how this level is ripe for replaying over and over again just to hit a better score. Visually, the level didn't quite push my "ooh" button, but it was certainly good looking enough for the gameplay which clearly focused on delivering fun and challenge rather than building atmosphere. The breaking reeds were a nice touch and the crocs gave me a giggle too.

What are the red Xs for though? Is that a hint as to secret areas or something?

Anyhow, job well done for a tasty slice of classic arcade style platforming amusement. :star::star::star::star:<3		2010-08-25 18:11:00

Author:
Ungreth
Posts: 2130

What are the red Xs for though? Is that a hint as to secret areas or something?


Sorry to not realise earlier that you had a question :/

Well, they obviously do something. It's a discreet way of making more points. You stick the star sticker on them.

2010-08-30 06:53:00

Author:
RangerZero
Posts: 3901

Hi, I played the level. It was really challengeling. The level is pretty hard in general (I died a lot of times xD) but this is is good, and you warn it in the description, so OK. Nervertheless I found specially hard the part of the wheel with the spikes. Perhaps is too hard, almost annoying . The visuals are pretty simple... indeed too simple in my opinion. The gameplay was great, apart of being too hard sometimes as I commented above. In general the level is very classic, and reminds me the typical platform games.

In general 5* for the fun I got, while playing . Could you play my F4F level "The tanks factory 2" Thank you		2010-08-30 21:54:00

Author:
onturenio
Posts: 138


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