Description

WHAT IS THIS?
Super RMN World 2 is a collaborative effort to make a solid Mario game in SMBX. It's the latest in the RMN Bros. series that has run on this site over the years. Unlike previous events, this project is more organized to produce a cohesive result. Even so, all users of RMN are welcome to participate! No past experience necessary! I'm your gracious host, halibabica, and I'll be overseeing the whole thing.



THE STORY
The Mario Bros. are on vacation with Peach in Yoshi's Archipelago, a group of exotic islands far from the Mushroom Kingdom. Of course, wherever they go, trouble quickly follows. Bowser and his Koopa army crash the party and kidnap the princess! The brothers' mission is clear, but something seems off about Bowser'whatever may be, there's work to do! Mario and Luigi hop right to it with the help of the princess' devoted bodyguard, Agent Toad!



WHAT YOU NEED
To participate, you need only make stages in SMBX and submit them. There are some rules, though. Please read the following before diving in.

  • You need Super Mario Bros. X to make your levels.
  • You need to save your levels in this folder. Put it in SMBX's 'worlds' folder and save your levels inside. It contains resources that will be standard for the project.
  • Levels must be created for this event. Don't submit preexisting work!
  • You may use custom graphics and music, but be sure to put them in a folder with the same name as your level. This graphics pack may be useful.


Once you have the engine and the standard resources, you're ready to start! However, for your stages to be accepted, the following must be adhered to.



SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
As this game is intended to feel like a legit Mario title, there must be some consistency in the levels. For this project, you will need:

  • 1 middle ring; the checkpoint for your stage. It's the sparkly ring in the SMW NPC tab. You can't use more than one due to engine limitations, so place it wisely!
  • 5 smiley flowers; these replace dragon coins. They're also on the SMW NPC tab and your stage needs exactly five of them. They must all be obtainable in one go through the level. The debugger can tell you how many you used. For technical reasons, they must all be on the Default layer.
  • 1 end goal roulette; this gate marks the end of the stage. It's on the SMB3 NPC tab, and jumping through it ends the level. The player automatically walks to the right and off-screen when they touch it, so every level must end going to the right.


These objects will only appear if you save your level in the Super RMN World 2 folder. Include them in your stage, and beyond that, the sky's the limit! Or is it?



ADDITIONAL GUIDELINES
This game is themed around Yoshi, and SMBX has a wide variety of them. Each island has its own theme, too. Your stages need to match the themes of the islands they're being made for. The difficulty should be relative to the island's order in the game. Each island also has its own color of Yoshi, so any you include should match, and you're encouraged to use them!

  • You may only submit one stage to each island.
  • You must be able to complete each level while riding Yoshi. This means no ladders required for progress or jumps where you must ditch Yoshi. This includes boss stages (more on this later).



WIsland NameThemesYoshi
1Green Grass Islandgrass/woodGreen
2Deathly Desert Islandsand/ghostsYellow
3Giga Growth Islandplants/giantsPink
4Molten Mine Islandcave/lavaPurple
5Slip Drip Islandwater/iceLight Blue
6Sky High Islandcliffs/cloudsDark Blue
7Pyre Fire Islandfire/wastelandRed
8Brain Drain Islandpipes/factoryBlack

About boss stages, you're allowed to make them, but their rules differ slightly. Each island can only have one boss and one mini-boss. Boss stages should end with the boss room instead of the end goal roulette. Due to post-production event handling, you don't need to include an exit; the stage will end when the fight is over. Boss stages still need to be thematically appropriate and have 1 middle ring and 5 smiley flowers. The player should be able to beat the boss while riding Yoshi. The boss stages of islands 7 and 8 are reserved for story purposes.




GENERAL GUIDELINES
I know, I know, we're almost there. In addition to all of the above, please keep the following in mind:

  • Try to stick with one art style for your level. Don't mix SMB3 and SMW koopas/coins/etc.
  • Don't let mushrooms from blocks escape off nearby screen edges.
  • Since stages must end with the end goal roulette, all other exit types are banned.
  • The SMW Bowser statue and SMB3 Lakitu are banned for their quirkiness. Use the SMB3 Bowser statue and SMW Lakitu instead!
  • No swimmable waterfalls. These should be for aesthetic use only.
  • Stages must be two-player compatible. Include both player start positions and ensure the stage is passable more than once. Basically, avoid scenarios that could trap the 2nd player.
  • Prevent no-win situations. If the player isn't dead, they should still be able to complete the stage.
  • Avoid single-tile gaps. The player wall-zips if they stand up in a short passage. This can break the game sometimes, so use caution!





LEVEL FEEDBACK
'HALI THERE ARE TOO MANY RULES I HATE THIS'
I know the rules are extensive, but we're aiming to make this the best episode yet. Don't fret if you can't remember it all. As you submit your stages, I'll be reviewing them and providing feedback. You will be expected to use it to make revisions. Failure to do so may result in your levels being altered post-production, or denied completely! Users are encouraged to test each other's levels. Every bit of feedback helps!



TIMELINE
Submissions will be open for all of July. Afterward, there will be a two-week period where revisions can still be made (but no new submissions). Then the gates will shut and the rest of the game will be processed by yours truly. It will take time, but it will get done.

If you have any questions, please ask! I hope we can build a fantastic new RMN World together!

Details

  • 07/01/2016 12:00 AM
  • 08/15/2016 11:59 PM

Registration

You must be logged in to sign up for Super RMN World 2: Yoshi's Archipelago.

Participants Entries
kentona
Davenport
Jparker1984
Solitayre
Ratty524
outcry312
nin8halos
Bart_Sol
pyrodoom
Seiromem
jackalotrun
Blobofgoo
Animebryan
lonestarluigi
Jalex
TungerManU
NeverSilent
Illy
Frozen
Fflo
El_WaKa
Frogge
Punkitt
Thunder176
Kloe
KuraiYukiChan
eric00051
Entry Status Key
  • - Pending
  • - Validating
  • - Accepted
  • - Rejected

Posts

author=Seiromem
So I started on my world 9 level. I'm gonna make it into a spooky "Glitch" realm (with coherent tile placement, i assure you) . Had to find a good piece of music to use that would fit the theme. I Thought "Lavender Town, why not?".
So I worked it out and put it in the level and started working.

10 minutes into working on the level my body is shaking like I'm starting to get an anxiety, but it never escalates any further. I managed to endure it for 5 more minutes before snapping and turning off the editor.

So anybody have an idea of a piece of spooky music I should use?

Are you saying you were experiencing symptoms of Lavender Town Syndrome? Which version of it were you using? As for creepy music, you can find plenty on YouTube like this one:


Anyway, I have more feed back for your levels:

Giga Funklen (W3) Seiromem:
The precaution you took with the flower & P-Switch, the block on the right of the flower can lead the player to their death (even while pushing left). It would be better if you move the flower & the blocks 1 tile to the left, so the right side block isn't flush with the edge of the platform. Other than that, much better.

Debilitating Depths (W5) by Seiromem:
Apparently, if you're underwater while standing still (no momentum) & standing on a slippery surface, you can't walk to the left or right. Thanks for the 1-up factory at the 1st big cracked ice block :) When I got to the cracked ice block with the trapped 1-ups, I couldn't manage to break it, but when I left the room & came back, 1 of the 1-ups was out of the block without breaking it (the other 1-up simply wasn't there). Apparently, yoshi can also just eat the 1-ups right through the block. Quite the challenging level.

Fiery Flumes (W7) by Seiromem:
Nice to see you fixed that impossible to reach pipe toward the end. The difficulty is definitely on par with a world 7 level instead of a world 4 level.

Abandoned Factory (W8) by Seiromem:
The difficulty hasn't changed much, still rage inducing. Poison mushroom generators still too fast. Bots are a pain when getting the 1st flower. I'd feel sorry for anyone trying to get all 5 flowers in this level without relying on the checkpoint.

One problem I kept having during my testing of all these levels was whenever the P-Switch effect ends, I would get a ridiculous amount of lag, which lasted for a few seconds, enough to get you hit or killed without knowing what was going on. I don't know if its just on my end or what.

@Hali's feedback:
As for my Naval Piranha boss fight, I've been testing it to get it to work right. I'll put up another video by Monday (no internet access over the weekend) showing how the boss fight plays out, but to be honest, its kind of a mess.

For the W7 level, I don't mind taking the 'Hell' out of it into 'Fire & Brimstone'. This wasn't a revenge level but meant to be a challenging fire/lava level that I was excited to work on. I usually keep mp3s outside the level folder & did that by habit. When you say 'expand the ground' are you talking about making all the landing surfaces wider or actually using more of the black ground tiles? Because that almost requires a redesign of most of the stage.

I'll cut back on the power ups & get rid of the invisible coin blocks too. I'll cut the fireball generator's duration by a whole second as well. I guess I need to cut some more hazards from the 2nd half as well. I'll have the 2nd version up by Monday then. Aside from those 2 levels, I'll try to get my world 6 level finished (if the editor will stop trolling me with layer movement & auto-scrolling) & maybe a world 4 level next.

Btw, I'm not so sure a 2 week extension is going to be enough. While some people here can generate a level more quickly, some people like me can take a while (1st time making professional grade levels).
Seiromem
I would have more makerscore If I did things.
6375
So I started on my world 9 level. I'm gonna make it into a spooky "Glitch" realm (with coherent tile placement, i assure you) . Had to find a good piece of music to use that wouyld fit the theme. I Thought "Lavender Town, why not?".
So I worked it out and put it in the level and started working.

10 minutes into working on the level my body is shaking like I'm starting to get an anxiety, but it never escalates any further. I managed to endure it for 5 more minutes before snapping and turning off the editor.

So anybody have an idea of a piece of spooky music I should use?
NeverSilent
Got any Dexreth amulets?
6280
Whew. I powered through and finished my first level (that I had been struggling with for weeks) within a few hours of work. I'm still not entirely happy but some of the sections, but I would need a neutral opinion on how to improve them. But hey, I did something!
I just added my second level, and I MAY try another, but whether I finish a third is completely based on the amount of time I have.
"Bullet Bill Bouncing in Billowy Blumes"(ok, I was told by a friend that blume was a word meaning cloud or fog. I just searched it up, and it doesn't seen to exist. Dang it) is a sky level using an SMB3-styled SMB3DL tileset where you bounce off of enemies, frequently bullet bills, to get through. It's a rather short stage, but I tried to make it challenging, using a lava level I watched a video on in this forum as a form of inspiration(I think it was "Fire and Brimstone"?) It also has two lakitus, one being a punishment for missing a bullet bill, the other adding tension to the last two bits of the stage.
I'm a little off on the inclusion of the lakitus and the end part of the stage - especially with them both being in the same stage. I can't wait to see feedback on this level, because I've been working on it for 10 days and I am not sure how I feel on it at the moment, whether I'm proud of the amount of work that went into it or disappointed I didn't do more.

Edit: Also, I played Jalex's "Lakitu Rampage", and that stage frustrated me so quickly. Those dang lakitus are BRUTAL, man. Also, I know what you intend the player to do with that koopa section at the very bottom of the second section... but I really don't feel like that's a good idea, because it requires you to have a yoshi or else it's a no-win scenario. I even had a leaf and I couldn't make it back to any other parts of the stage, and I BARELY made it back to the koopa thing when I ran out of fly and had to float back - I don't know why I bothered though, might as well either cheat or drop down the pit. Some of the flowers weren't worth collecting in the brutality of the lakitus raining death upon me, and eventually I just sort of... got tired of the level, and flew to the end.
Even despite all that, it could just be my playing skills and that I suck horribly, but I also wanted to say that I'm split on whether it'd be better for your lakitu to be killable or not. I hate getting blindsided by lakitus when they CAN hurt you, but I also like being able to kill them. Having them friendly feels better in SMBX, but would also make it alot harder because you can't hurt them anymore. I had alot of fun bouncing around like a maniac every time I killed lakitu, though. I forgot the exact situation, but I think I was flying, hit the lakitu and lost my yoshi, then proceeded to kill the lakitu and land back on my yoshi IMMEDIATELY after. Awesome.
Also... what's the point of that intro bit? It doesn't add anything to the level, and one time it REALLY confused me because I didn't realize the ship was going to fall. You could have started Mario in the second section, or had the pipe in section 1 right after the first stretch of land and just ignore the airship all together, and that'd feel alot better.
The music was nice, and I liked the background you chose for the fourth section, though the stage feels empty at times. Maybe a few more clouds could do it?
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16873
Well, Davenport, I see you submitted one of your extra ice levels as a bonus stage. I checked it out, as well as the other two you submitted previously (I got them before they were taken down). I was going to recommend which one I thought was the best for your bonus stage, but to be honest, all three of them have serious issues.

In Snow Mountain, you break some of the event's rules with your sliding section and propeller block. There's no way to get Yoshi through that mess, so it simply doesn't work. Not to mention that the sliding section will kill you without fail. The slopes aren't positioned correctly and you die every time.

Frosty Cavern had me stumped for a bit since the first half of the stage isn't in a cavern at all. Of the three, this one probably has the most salvage potential, but it needs restructured in how it works. I like the angle of puzzle cavern to escape from, but you require fire flowers to pass several areas, and the whole thing is rife with no-win situations. It needs some real adjustments even to be doable.

Ice Climbers also broke some of the event rules by being impassable for Yoshi. It was also very repetitive and all over the place. It doesn't justify its hugeness in any way; I was heavily reminded of your older work.

Even apart from their separate issues, all three of them are lacking the correct number of flowers, they all have mushrooms in blocks, you improperly used red coins in them...the list goes on. I know you're capable of better than this, dude. I've seen what you can make before, and none of these three is up to your potential or the standards for this event. If you want more in-depth feedback on one to make revisions to, I'll be happy to post my thoughts. It's your call.
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16873
from Ratty524
should any W9 levels have flowers to collect?
All other event rules apply. So, yes, still flowers.
Woo, I was getting a bit worried there. Glad to see it extended to the 15th of august, now I can finally get my world 8 level done!
Ratty524
The 524 is for 524 Stone Crabs
12986
author=halibabica
I'm guessing the burden of creating an ordinary stage proved too much for him. Which is too bad, 'cuz I was about to introduce gimmick island anyway. I'll PM him about it if he doesn't notice.

Speaking of, as the end of this week draws near, it's clear we need a bit more time to fill this game up. I'm extending the deadline to August 15th. Focus on the islands that need help! Including this one:

W9: Super Star Island
Theme: Bonus (whatever you want)
Yoshi: Any Color


This island doesn't need to be a full-blown world like the rest, but if you had an idea that didn't fit anywhere else, have fun with it here! All other event rules still apply, so just mind that, 'kay?

Question: What will be the conditions for the player to enter W9? Will they need to get stars or just beat the game once? If the former, should any W9 levels have flowers to collect?
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16873
Oh, you guys...this is what the feedback process is for. I don't expect it to be perfect on arrival, and I'll happily help you with any issues I may notice. Don't be so paranoid! :3
Kloe
I lost my arms in a tragic chibi accident
2236
author=halibabica
I'm guessing the burden of creating an ordinary stage proved too much for him. Which is too bad, 'cuz I was about to introduce gimmick island anyway. I'll PM him about it if he doesn't notice.

Speaking of, as the end of this week draws near, it's clear we need a bit more time to fill this game up. I'm extending the deadline to August 15th.


YUS!! I was so worried about not being able to finish my ones, I've spent ages making it as possible and glitch/problem free as possible...
NeverSilent
Got any Dexreth amulets?
6280
Thanks for the extension, halibabica! I wasn't sure I was even going to make it in time, as my progress is incredibly slow. But now I might actually submit something after all.

Though, I am extremely unsure about my own work, and constantly feel like I'm breaking some fundamental rule of Mario level design, even though I've only completed maybe 25% of my level so far. Would it be possible for you to take a look at what I've done so far, and simply tell me if what I'm going for is worth pursuing at all or if I should not even bother putting more effort into this? Thanks either way!
Punkitt
notorious rpgmaker 2k3 shill
3341
Aw dude, W9 seems really fun! I'll get my Dead Desert stage done then turn to this.
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16873
I'm guessing the burden of creating an ordinary stage proved too much for him. Which is too bad, 'cuz I was about to introduce gimmick island anyway. I'll PM him about it if he doesn't notice.

Speaking of, as the end of this week draws near, it's clear we need a bit more time to fill this game up. I'm extending the deadline to August 15th. Focus on the islands that need help! Including this one:

W9: Super Star Island
Theme: Bonus (whatever you want)
Yoshi: Any Color


This island doesn't need to be a full-blown world like the rest, but if you had an idea that didn't fit anywhere else, have fun with it here! All other event rules still apply, so just mind that, 'kay?
Ratty524
The 524 is for 524 Stone Crabs
12986
author=Link_2112
I'm out.

Aw. Why? Need help with anything?
Ratty524
The 524 is for 524 Stone Crabs
12986
I was able to find the topic anyway. This seems very useful!
Punkitt
notorious rpgmaker 2k3 shill
3341
...Weird. Apparently I can't drop links to the SMBX forums?
author=Punkitt
Hey, does anyone need a tileset compiler?
http://www.supermariobrosx.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=11723
This is literally one of the most useful SMBX things I've ever laid my hands on. It's super convenient if you want to buff your tilesets up a bit!


"Information

The requested topic does not exist."
Punkitt
notorious rpgmaker 2k3 shill
3341
Hey, does anyone need a tileset compiler?
http://www.supermariobrosx.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=11723
This is literally one of the most useful SMBX things I've ever laid my hands on. It's super convenient if you want to buff your tilesets up a bit!
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16873
from kentona
I know I've railed on you in the past (unfairly) and I know that you don't appreciate my juvenile puns (Broshi's Island), but you are remarkably dedicate to the events that you run. Kudos to that!

I'm dead inside I'm just happy to bring people together for something.