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The Temple of Bubbles: Part II

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The Temple of Bubbles: Part IIEvilwuun
Part 2 in the Temple of Bubble series, focused around platforming.
With the help of a good friend of mine, and a severe amount of patience, I have finally managed to release my second level!
Picking up where the first Temple left off, you (and friends?) have made your way to the entrance of the trial rooms of the Temple of Bubbles! Run, jump, swim, swing, grab, push and pull your way through the traps and puzzles as you wind your way towards the temple interior!
A warning, this level is fairly long, with the difficulty leaning towards hard by the end. This was rigorously playtested by myself and a group of friends over development, and I've tried to leave a polished platformer in the wake of my late night excursions. I think I've succeeded :-) ENJOY!
Oh, and I'm willing to do half a dozen to a dozen F4F's, first come first serve!
EDIT: Here's some screenshots, I finally figured out how to do it ;p
http://i1038.photobucket.com/albums/a463/Evilwuun/APhoto_1.jpg http://i1038.photobucket.com/albums/a463/Evilwuun/APhoto_4.jpg http://i1038.photobucket.com/albums/a463/Evilwuun/APhoto_2.jpg http://i1038.photobucket.com/albums/a463/Evilwuun/APhoto.jpg http://i1038.photobucket.com/albums/a463/Evilwuun/APhoto_3.jpg		2010-10-10 19:11:00

Author:
EvilWuun
Posts: 152

EDIT: I've deleted this comment due to the fact that it's completely irrelevant to the level...;P2010-10-11 15:15:00

Author:
EvilWuun
Posts: 152

Pics or it didn't happen!
Jokes. But yeah, posting some pics generates -way- more attention than just text.
Plus more info on the level will help too. Secret things to collect? Story? etc.

Also leave some feedback on other levels tagged with "F4F". Then you are pretty much (99.9%) guaranteed some plays/reviews.
The more effort you put in, the more you will get in return.

I'm rather harsh in my reviews, but I'll be sure to check your "temple of bubbles" levels and leave some feedback.
=====

- You go to the left, you die without warning. Quite a cheap death. I don't think this is necessary.
+ Vine design.
- First time you walk left (in next section) a bubble is half visible in the back layer, but you cant get it yet. Looks like a secret area. :/
- Why does the elevator only activate when you reach that dead end. I don't really care for excessive switches, but they are better than random sensor switches. The player should input an action in order to progress (most of the time).
- Manually moving sackboy back two layers while stationary, feels unnatural and breaks the flow of gameplay. (imo)
- Flat grey wall is rather plain in the platform section. Platforms have nice timing (in both movement and pause) though.
- Would dissolve the falling ledge pieces out of screen, so player doesn't notice.
- Why is there a small ledge with nothing below the next checkpoint? If it's not meant for the player, cut it.
- Would be nice if the spong block keys where something magical like a gem (or something that's not totally cheezy) rather than a camo sponge.
-+ Top underwater sponge got a little stuck. May have been intentional.
- After underwater spike wheels, visible bubble giver thing. Slap a barnacle decoration over it or something.
+ Puzzle platforming. Love stuff like this.
- Camera loses focus/staging when outer switches are pulled to the edges.
- Possible to get stuck if you move the steps over the checkpoint, and die?
- Annoying to layer switch down when jumping past centre checkpoint.
+ Nice design on the 2 switch elevator. The layer switching between them works wonders.
- (above rotating wheel platforms) Can't get to the white ledge on the left from the checkpoint area. I would flip the ledge design horiztonally to suggest to the player to jump on it from the left side.
-+ Optionally keys are always a nice thing to have. Something to think about.
+ Collapsing pieces on the bridge were nice. Never seen one designed in LBP that way, reminded me of Uncharted 2.
- Camera on next checkpoint should focus on what's next, and not the bridge.
+ Nice mechanics and folded gameplay here.
- I could have a smaller sponge on the left/right moving spike thingees. So the player doesn't kill themselves on the spikes while grabbing the outer part of the wide sponge.
- Brain on mask ruined by bubble combo. :/
- Blind faith jump to start the next section.
- I think the grab switches should look different to the standard grabbable sections.
- Player cannot see spikes below the right roating maze with 2 switches.

Had to double check every wheel, to make sure every switch was hit.

I feel you need a better feedback system for the grab switches in the 2nd brother's puzzle room.
I couldn't remember which ones I had pulled, or which ones still need to be.
I would add lights, stop the completed wheels from rotating, inform the player of the number of wheels/switches or something along those lines.

Still very enjoyable.
4 stars from me. Defintely worth a look. 		2010-10-12 04:46:00

Author:
midnight_heist
Posts: 2513

Thanks for the review!
=I'll start by saying, the first elevator isn't hooked to a switch/sensor at all, its' always active, with a pause so you can get off at the top, hit the button, and get back on in one shot
=Having to move the sackperson back and forth between layers is a lesson learned from making this level ;p I agree, it breaks the flow of game play
=I'm not entirely sure what small ledge you're referring to, to be honest (?)
=the sponge-blocks are made of green floral sponge or something like that, and I needed to use them throughout the level because of thermo restrictions; hence, the lack of decorations in certain areas as well...another lesson learned
=the top sponge getting stuck wasn't intentional, but it WAS intentionally left that way when discovered
=agree with flipping the ledge around for a better hint, thanks
=Believe it or not, the sponges on the rotating spike platforms is smaller from its original form, they were consistently deadly before, so I shrank them to what I thought was acceptable: still POSSIBLE to die there, but also entirely possible to do
=because of thermo problems, I could not, as I wanted to, either change the material of the grabswitches OR add lights...I also wanted to add gears that started moving when you activated each puzzle as a visual cue, but that fell through along with the thermo filling entirely....
In the end, I honestly consider this level a success for all it taught me NOT to do
THANKS AGAIN!		2010-10-12 09:29:00

Author:
EvilWuun
Posts: 152

I just played your level and heres my feedback:

Positives:
+Puzzles were good
+Design of the level looked pretty good also
+Platforming was okay
+Boss Fights were unique how you did it

Negatives:
-Level to me kind of lacked visuals it looked okay but could use more detail

Overall the level was very good::star::star::star::star:
F4F My level SSBB- Battleship Harlberd Interior		2010-10-12 11:07:00

Author:
Sabre_
Posts: 653

Thanks for the review Sabre_! I'll hit you back with a review soon!2010-10-12 11:14:00

Author:
EvilWuun
Posts: 152

I liked it very much, but at the end it was little annoying.
The visuals were good, but platforming and tricky puzzles were superb.
About the end: It took me forever to find and grab all green sponges to defeat second boss.
That almost caused me rip off my gaming pants, but thankfully I beat the level and got satisfied of this level overall.
4 stars + Heart! Heart is for trying to ace one day.		2010-10-14 18:32:00

Author:
Coconuts
Posts: 384

Thanks for the review, Coconuts! I completely agree with the end of the level, but the thermo stopped me from setting up a system to let you know which switches you had pulled etc..2010-10-14 18:35:00

Author:
EvilWuun
Posts: 152

I just played your level.

I liked the level a lot.. There was a lot of movement in the obstacles and you made great use of the different layers. Sometimes it got a little bit confusing because I didn't really know where I was or where I had to go, but I was able to figure it out pretty quickly.
Nice use of material (fits into a temple) and good decoration.
the gameplay was fun. i didn't really get stuck , apart from the second boss (brother), which was kind of irritating at first.

overall I gave you 4 stars

Great work		2010-10-15 00:06:00

Author:
MirkoQuarck
Posts: 66

Hey everyone!
Sorry to be a bummer, but I've pulled Temple of Bubbles Part II off the servers for renovations...namely, I'm pulling the last boss fight in favor of more decorations and such...I'll post again when it's back up, my apologies for those affected (no one, I think...) 		2010-10-15 07:09:00

Author:
EvilWuun
Posts: 152

ALRIGHT! Temple of Bubbles: Part 2 is back up and better than ever! Removed the last boss fight, and added in a bunch of decorations and such! I'm ready to do some more F4F, so HIT ME UP!2010-10-19 02:12:00

Author:
EvilWuun
Posts: 152

I like the level of difficulty in your level. Playing in the dark was challenging, but nothing too challenging that it couldn't be figured out. I really like the use of grab material from ceilings and under suspended spikes....also the rusty metal ziplines were kinda cool. Liked it, thank you for the challenge!2010-10-19 03:19:00

Author:
Quazau
Posts: 44

Hey Quazau, thanks for the review! Although, I think you MAY have reviewed part I instead of part 2, the first has it's own thread....still, thanks!2010-10-19 03:46:00

Author:
EvilWuun
Posts: 152

Level was decent all around, nice platforming and I enjoyed the last part where you get to swing on a bunch of grab sponges, I'm a sucker for those Gave you a 5 :star: Nice design of the level as well Feedback on my Ashton Chronicles1: Hidden Water Temple 2010-10-21 01:23:00

Author:
damaz10
Posts: 771

Right, this is the F4F you asked for, so imma do it!

Positives
I loved the whole theme of the level, the temple and the point-collection. I think I got #6 on the scoreboard, because I missed some of the secret bubble areas (which I also thought were good)
You really tried with the visuals, and it shows, some parts of the level look great.
The boss was quite funny, I liked how the mask moved (was it on a magic eye?)
The gameplay was solid, and the theme coherent, which, to be honest, are the fundamentals of a good LBP level.
The LBPC cutout was a nice twist on how that's normally done.
I liked the rope-vines, they were very clever!
Negatives
I really really hate saying this, but some areas were visually lacking. My advice would be to avoid wide open spaces and try and stay more tight-knit, but keeping enough room for Sackboy to move around in. It's difficult, but sometimes working in smaller spaces allows you to be more detailed, and detail is appreciated! Also, try using the front thin layer to add some extra details.
The boss just sort of... vanished. I thought I broke the level when I got his brain, because the whole room went! It was a little disconcerting.
Again, a visuals thing, because some areas looked a little square, which I can find to be quite dull. Sorry!

Overall, I really liked it, so you get 4 big fat juicy stars!
Thank you for reviewing my level!		2010-10-21 17:40:00

Author:
Unknown User

Thanks for the review, CountRuby! The visuals are something that I'm trying hard to work on, I seem to be better with logic and level design than making things look pretty...2010-10-22 16:26:00

Author:
EvilWuun
Posts: 152

Sorry that i am so late with my review ^^:

pro
+creative puzzles and obstacles
+good platforming
+many areas are very nice


con
-not all areas are visually good
-a preview what the swtiches/buttons are activating would be good



All in all it was really fun to play it:
:star::star::star::star: <3		2010-10-25 19:58:00

Author:
se-mi92
Posts: 101

Hey no worries for being late, I never REALLY consider reviews an obligation, just a friendly courtesy! Anyway, thanks for the review, se-mi92!2010-10-29 07:19:00

Author:
EvilWuun
Posts: 152


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