Ends 04/01/2012 12:00 AM

Judges
halibabica

It's finally here! The much-anticipated third installment of the RMN community series! And this time, halibabica's in charge!

WHAT IS THIS

Super RMN Bros. is a community collaborative game where everyone uses the Super Mario Bros. X engine to create Mario levels! The stages are made and submitted by members of RMN, then compiled into one big game at the end of the event. Huzzah!

WHAT YOU NEED TO PARTICIPATE

Super Mario Bros. X v1.3, available at the Download link. This is the latest version of SMBX. It has everything you need to get started from the player, the editor, and a sample world.

You can also download the SMBX Graphics Pack by Red Yoshi here. It has a ton of Mario Brothers graphics that you can use in your level with a simple copy+paste!

JUST WHAT IS SUPER MARIO BROTHERS X?

Super Mario Bros X is a freeware game engine by Redigit geared towards having the gameplay features and physics of Mario 3 and Super Mario World while adding a ton of cool features and not having to deal with the restrictions of the old (S)NES hardware. If you want to see what SMBX can do, check out the games here on RMN or watch these videos showcasing SMBX's capabilities!

Games are distributed as a world with levels package they can add to Super Mario Bros X and play from the main game. There is no way to make a self contained game so all players will need to download SMBX in order to even play the game. The game does come with a large set of graphics and sounds like the RPG Maker RTPs so everybody at least has a large number of platformer resources to work with (and it'll keep the download of the actual game itself small).

You can view the RMN engine page for SMBX here.

HELP!

The editor can be tricky to use, especially for beginners. You can ask questions on our SMBX Help thread on our forums! If you have any questions go there for some tips or helpful links.

We also have a tutorials section on RMN for SMBX.

SUBMISSION RULES

  • Levels must be made in SMBX v1.3 .
  • I don't know if you've ever made Mario levels before. There are dozens of hacks and roms out there, so it's possible you've played custom levels or created your own. However, this project is being made specifically in the SMBX engine, so if you want to contribute, you have to use that. You can download it here.

  • Levels must be made FOR THIS PROJECT
  • So, you've used SMBX before, huh? Hey, you can just submit levels you already made! Right? WRONG. If you didn't make the level specifically for RMN Bros. 3, you're not allowed to submit it. Do not just zip up the levels of your personal project and dump them in here (Davenport, I'm looking at you). Everyone has to start from scratch. And if I catch you trying to submit a pre-made level, ooh, I'll, I'LL- ...deny it. Simple as that, really.

  • Levels must end in ONE SMB3 STAR
  • Starman doesn't work in SMBX like it does in the Mario games of yore. Each one you collect instead adds to your star count. There are two kinds of stars in the engine: SMB3 stars and SMW stars. The latter adds to your star count, but doesn't end the level. The former concludes the stage when collected. Each level must have ONE and ONLY ONE level-ending star. However, you can have any number of SMW stars (covered later).

  • There is no limit to the number of levels you can submit.
  • Beyond these four rules, the sky's just about the limit. There are a few other criteria your levels must meet for them to be accepted, but they're nothing huge, and are as follows.

LEVEL CRITERIA

  1. Checkpoints
  2. Theoretically, every level should have one of these. It's the SMW checkpoint object that lets you continue from partway through the level. Unless your level is extremely short, it should have one. If it can't have one for specific reasons (auto-scrolling, switch block/character shenanigans, etc.), it's recommended you not make the stage too long. Also, SMBX can only support one checkpoint per level, so placing multiples doesn't work.

  3. Power-Ups
  4. Your stage should have a good balance of items that are helpful to the player. ? Blocks should never contain lone Mushrooms; don't be afraid to give the player a Fire Flower or Leaf. On the other hand, exceptional items like the Tanooki and Hammer Suits should not be easily obtained. Use discretion with where you place items. One at the start and one after the checkpoint would be the least you could do. Also, pick items that the player can put to good use. A Fire Flower in an area with monsters immune to fire does the player no good; maybe an Ice Flower or Yoshi might be better instead. On the subject of Yoshi, he's a power-up like any other, and no restrictions are being placed on his use. Similarly, all styles of Kuribo's Shoe are allowed. Just remember, these things are very helpful, so choose carefully where you make them available.

  5. Banned Objects
  6. Your level must not contain any of the following items. If it does, you will be required to remove them.

    • SMB2 Crystal Ball, SMB3 Roulette, SMB3 ? Ball, SMW Keyhole, SMW Exit Gate
    • All banned for the same reason; they end the level. All levels must end with an SMB3 Star. No other exit type is allowed.

    • SMW Bowser Statue
    • Banned due to its glitchy hit box. You can still be hit by its fireballs while standing on top of it. Use the SMB3 Bowser Statue instead!

    • SMW Dry Bones
    • Banned for its stupid hit box. You may place Dry Bones in your level, but all Dry Bones in the project will use the SMB3 sprites instead.

  7. Unbanned Objects
  8. These are objects that were disallowed in the past. I'm permitting them for the reasons stated.

    • SMB3 Lakitu
    • This was banned in RMN Bros. 2 because it behaves erratically. You may use them in your levels, but be very careful when you do. They aren't impossible to deal with, but they can make situations extremely difficult. You'll definitely hear from me if it's a problem.

    • SMW Star
    • These were formerly banned because they didn't end the level. You may now use them as bonus secret stars in your stages. The player can collect them on alternate paths, but must be able to return to the rest of the level after grabbing them. More on these later.

  9. Different Characters
  10. This is, first and foremost, a Mario game. Mario will be the only character available to play as, but that doesn't mean you can't use the other characters. If you want to make a stage involving Luigi, Toad, Peach, and/or Link, you must specify so. Include the appropriate character block at the start. If you don't, I'll assume the stage was meant to be played as Mario. You don't have to switch back to Mario at the end of the stage, though. I will manage character swapping in the hub area.

  11. Player 2 Start
  12. SMBX has the option to play with a friend by sharing a keyboard and crowding around a monitor. There is no way to disallow a multiplayer game, so be sure to include both P1 and P2's start positions in your levels. HOWEVER, this is all you need to do to accommodate the second player. Making a balanced one-player game is difficult enough, so don't sweat it if something doesn't quite work for multi-mode. I'm not checking two player compatibility; you don't have to either.

  13. Secret Stars
  14. Each stage must have only one SMB3 level-ending star, but you can have (almost) as many SMW stars you want. Before you go throwing secret stars everywhere, though, you should understand how they work. The most important thing to know is that you can only have one star per section of a level. That's not my rule; that's a quirk of SMBX. It can only register one star per stage section, as it flags all stars in that section as 'collected' if one of them is found. Because this is the case, any secret stars you place must be in different sections than the star that ends the level. Incidentally, this also means the most stars any level can have is 21. Don't worry; if you mess it up, I'll tell you about it!

  15. Water Must be SWIMMABLE

    You can set waterfalls to either be swimmable or not, but ordinary water must always be. Don't fill your pits with water if they're supposed to be bottomless.

  16. Misc. Stuff
    • Pipes, Doors, and Carry Items
    • By default, all entrances in SMBX are set to disallow the player from carrying an item with them through the portal. If your level has objects the player may want to bring with them, be sure to set your entrances properly.

    • One-Tile Passages
    • Avoid making paths that are only one tile high. If Mario stands up in one, he zips through the wall in the opposite direction he's facing. In some places, this isn't a problem, but in others it can break the game. Spare my telling you to fix it and avoid creating such circumstances.

    • Ceilings
    • If you're making a water level or Mario is able to fly, you may want to block the area off the top of the screen so the player can't soar over everything. In aquatic stages, one could swim past everything from up there, so it's extremely important to include (same goes for underwater pits, actually). Of helpful note: one block placed above or below a level's boundary will create an impassable wall.

STORY AND TUTORIALS

Nothing too complicated here. Mario, Luigi, Toad, Peach, and Link have fallen into RMN's Pit of Challenges, where they must collect the stars from our levels if they ever hope to escape. The main villain is not Bowser, Wart, Kamek, Aristocrab, or anyone seen yet in the world of Mario. I will be making the final level myself, and the final boss is...me! Because by the time this is over, you will all want to kill me.

I will also be making a tutorial level that explains the mechanics of SMBX, covering both the basics and the advanced stuff. So don't bother explaining to the player how to break blocks with their tail or spin jump on Thwomps. I've got it covered!

TESTING AND FEEDBACK

This iteration of RMN Bros. is going to put greater emphasis on play testing and providing feedback for levels. I will be playing each level personally and leaving feedback the developers can use to improve their stages. My feedback will be divided into three categories:

  • Deal Breakers
  • These are things you MUST CHANGE or your level WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. These include all variety of game breaking errors and poor balance/design. I will provide thoughts and ideas on how to fix these, depending on the complexity of the problem.

  • If-You-Don'ts
  • These are things that, if you don't change them, I will. These include things like levels without checkpoints, blocks containing only mushrooms, or levels with unfitting power-ups. If you don't make these corrections, I'll see to them in the end.

  • Nitpicks
  • These are small complaints of low importance. Things that would make the level look or feel nicer, but aren't really a problem on their own. These will most likely be aesthetic in nature, and they don't have to be changed for the level to be accepted.

    Although I will be testing each level thoroughly myself, I strongly encourage others to do the same. You don't have to follow the same methods of providing feedback I am (in fact, you don't really have the authority to!), but every bit of criticism helps.

ADDITIONAL STAFFERS

This is a big project, and it's very bold of me to be managing it alone. That's why I'm leaving open two spots for other users to join me in running the show. But you can't just sign up and say "Hey hali I'll be your game management bro." You have to PROVE YOUR WORTH. How, you might ask? By playing levels and leaving feedback! The more in-depth, the better. Show me you have what it takes to contribute to this project, and I'll let you in. If you can't handle the work, I have no reason to hire you.

Duties of these staffers would include testing others levels and leaving feedback, as well as helping refine my own stages, tutorial, hubs, and so forth. I'm a tough critic, but even I can't face my own work alone!

PROJECT TIMELINE

Signups begin NOW, and EVERYONE is free to join! The project will run for one month (thirty days), and levels may be submitted for testing during this time. When the month is up, no more levels will be accepted. Existing levels may still be updated based on feedback. I will do my best to have the whole thing compiled just one week after the event ends. Then we can download and enjoy!

Registration

You must be logged in to sign up for Super RMN Bros. 3.

Posts

I'm home, BUT I just can not for the life of me even open SMBX tonight.
I'll look up the levels and other things tomorrow.
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16858
Smash, Bro by Link_2112

Deal Breakers

-

If You Don’ts

- your bonus room still has no music! Is this intentional?

- you forgot to reset P1’s start

Nitpicks

- I still think this stage has more potential to play with the Smash Bros. theme, but as it is now, it works just fine. Leaving out the secret star in the bonus room balances it out better, I think. Now the player won’t feel cheated if they pick the wrong path, and can pick the correct one if they’re paying attention.

Forest Castle by outcry312

Deal Breakers

- I think I misadvised you to put the pipe entrance on the same layer as the trampoline. Now it doesn’t appear unless you pick up the star, which means you can’t use it to go back to get the star in the first place. I think a more elegant solution is needed here. Put the secret star before the boss room, so the player can snag it without having to warp around. Leave the backtrack pipe open, keep it one-way only, and change the sign to tell the player they can go back if they missed some blue coins. I’d also put that SMB3 roulette frame where the star will appear so they know if they’re missing any coins. Sorry for making this complicated! ^^;

If You Don’ts

- you forgot to reset P1’s start.

Nitpicks

- your coins in the shaft are still place kinda haphazardly. Think about how Mario’s jumps arc, and place the coins accordingly. Do test runs to see if you can get them all and land safely.

- almost got the bonus section hidden right. Put it one tile lower than it is so the player must jump to the lowest log to find it. Where it is now, they’ll spot it if they miss the jump to the pipe (which is fairly likely).

Snow Mountain Castle by outcry312

Deal Breakers

- some of the blocks in your Hammer Bros. room must contain coins. If the player (stupidly) breaks them all, they can trap themselves inside.

- because ice flowers are available, it may be possible Mario can freeze a paratroopa in the boss room in a place he can’t reach (meaning he can’t finish it off). I’m not sure any of them actually have this problem specifically, but you should double check to be sure.

If You Don’ts

-

Nitpicks

- I saw the coins you stashed off-screen in the editor, but it seems SMBX doesn’t generate them. I guess one can’t hide items completely out of screen view…I’d nuke the coins and extend the snow mountains so you can’t see the tops of them.

- you were looking to make ice lava, weren’t you? Effect 13 is the one that generates when an object collides with lava. You can resprite that to make it look icy.

- the two Boom-Booms are extraordinarily easy since you can just chuck fireballs into the pit until they die. If you put in some of those bridge tiles that can be passed through from underneath, they gain some upward mobility (but you also need blocks placed to keep them from falling back down, too). Take a look at my Aristocrab’s Lair level from RMN Bros. 2 to see what I mean.

Boss Blitz by jackalotrun

Deal Breakers

-

If You Don’ts

-

Nitpicks

- this level works for what it is, and it’s kinda fun, but also kinda bland. The boss rush is a novel concept, but you need to do more to keep it interesting. You already have each monster in its own room; that room should be customized for that particular enemy. For example, put two Hammer Bros. in the first room with their classic triple-deck setup, give Mouser his platform to throw bombs from., and so on. There are also more bosses you could include without making the stage too long or difficult (it’s actually still kinda short!). Big Boo would make a great addition. There are two giant Piranha Plants in the Misc. tab that have boss HP. Ludwig from SMW would also fit nicely.

- it wasn’t much of an issue due to the level being so short, but you should give the player a power-up every two or three rooms. If you’re not good at fighting bosses, they can trash you pretty easily when you can only take two hits. Heck, on my first attempt, the Hammer Bro beat me all by himself! Ideally, I think you should have 9 bosses (see above nitpick) with a power-up after every two. That’s one at the start, one after the second, one after the fourth, one after the sixth (relocate checkpoint here!), and one more before the ninth.

Crystal Cave by jackalotrun

Deal Breakers

-

If You Don’ts

- this was loads better in length, but now you need to move your checkpoint further in. I’d put it in the middle of the water section.

- close off the top of the water section so the player can’t just swim over everything.

Nitpicks

- you’ve got the length you need, but the cave is still very barren! It needs more ? blocks and coins to pick up. It also needs more power-ups because of its increased length. I’d put one where the checkpoint is now. The spawning Mushrooms in the third section cover that part pretty well, so you wouldn’t need any beyond there.

- about that spawning Mushroom, you should either have it spawn more quickly or set it so it doesn’t move. Right now, it spawns and runs off the left of the screen immediately. I was confused for a few moments until I noticed the cracks in the ceiling, and I still had a moment to wonder if the Mushroom was coming back before it finally did.

Desert Dunes by jackalotrun

Deal Breakers

- move back the Spiny and Buzzy Beetle after the checkpoint. When they’re so close, they can take the player by surprise the moment they try again.

If You Don’ts

-

Nitpicks

- I like the improved vase, but it’s still off-center, and you can see brick backgrounds behind the upside down vase and the ? blocks when you hit them.

- put a power-up somewhere after your checkpoint; nearer to it would be better.

- your quicksand behaves like water. It needs to be flagged as quicksand in SMBX for that not to happen. Also, foreground quicksand is preferable.

- much improved! It feels like it could use a few more enemies and coins (like in the donut lift section at the end), but it’s tons better now than it was.

Rockin Retro by jackalotrun

Deal Breakers

-

If You Don’ts

-

Nitpicks

- still too short! Extend the underground section and put the checkpoint in the middle of it or something. That part felt like it should have more than just one screen.

- I still have a problem with the graphical inconsistencies. The castle sections would be better off with no background at all, and the tiles should be replaced with those SMB1 used. There are more pieces you can replace if you only try to find them.

Vivid Void by jackalotrun

Deal Breakers

-

If You Don’ts

-

Nitpicks

- my advice is the same as before. Make it longer, add more items, and level wrap would be sweet (that’s where going off one side of the screen puts you on the other). Was this changed at all?

Wooden World by jackalotrun

Deal Breakers

- with greater length comes greater need for more power-ups! The stage has a grand total of two right now: one at the start and one for beating Boom-Boom. You should stick in at least two more. Put one after the checkpoint and maybe hide one in the Hammer Bro’s blocks. Otherwise, this stage is just about perfect! Maybe needs more ? blocks here and there…

If You Don’ts

-

Nitpicks

-

Brilliant Battle by Tomstar

Deal Breakers

-

If You Don’ts

-

Nitpicks

- much better! Just a few suggestions to improve it aesthetically. When you set a monster to disappear when it’s killed, SMBX gets a bit screwy. You’ll notice that killing the main enemy of each group sends it back to where it spawned from; this is what I mean. The fix for this is kinda tedious, but worth the trouble for the game to not look like it’s glitching. You just have to set each main enemy as a layer separate from that of the others. Then, when it hides the enemy group’s layer on death, it won’t glitch because it’s not on the same layer as them. You don’t have to hide any of the new layers on death either, because killing the creature is the end result anyway. Did you get all that? If I explained it too confusingly, I can try again. ^^;

- The cannons and statues poof away rather uneventfully. Set the trigger boxes to play an explosion sound when you step on them. You might even consider changing the poof sprite to a bomb burst so it looks like they actually exploded. Of course, if you do that, you’ll have to set the other hide triggers to play explosions for when the other enemies poof away, too. Just a suggestion! :3

Cold Clouds by Tomstar

Deal Breakers

-

If You Don’ts

-

Nitpicks

- still really short and bland. Could use more enemy variety, coins, ? blocks, and length! More of everything, pretty much. Try following the eight-second rule I suggested for your brother. All the same goes for Great Grasslands, really.

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

We're moving right along here! The project has about 40 stages submitted, and half of those are approved (and a quarter improved such that I have no nitpicks!). Keep 'em comin', folks! This is going well!
author=halibabica
Sorry for making this complicated! ^^;

It's alright, I'll get right to fixing my problems. My fault for such poor design
anyway...

EDIT: I fixed Forest Castle problems. I believe this time it's finished for good,
but I'm ready for anything else I need to edit. I'm gonna work on the Snow Mountain
Castle now.

EDIT 2: Ok, I fixed Snow Mountain Castle problems. Graphical changes complete and I've re-uploaded it. There's two finished works hopefully. The problem with freezing koopas and getting stuck. I tried on purpose to freeze them in certain areas. No problem in first section with koopas, but I did find that problem with the second section of koopas. So I closed that unneeded open area off, to prevent them from being unreachable. Also, about the boom-boom spot. I went with your idea at first, but then my brother Seiromem gave a idea that works that I like. I just realised though that you can still shoot fireballs from above... So hold on, gotta fix that too.(Edit 3: I'm going to re-upload one more time.)
Seiromem
I would have more makerscore If I did things.
6375
Wait so my levels are fine now? Or did you think i was NOT done editing them? Just incase, i AM done editing the levels, and would like to know if there is anything else i should adjust.
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16858
I wasn't aware you'd updated them. I'll take a look sometime soon.

Also, wow, that's two pairs of bros working on RMN Bros.
by ok I mean I'll get to it very soon
One last thing, Vivid Void was unchanged due to lack of time
Should be fixed now (Crosses fingers for no deal breakers or if you don'ts)
Ok, what's up there now is the FINAL version of Snow Mountain Castle. Alot of constant changes went to the Boom-Booms. But I tested and it should be good, without one just shooting fireballs easilly.

Also, Jackalotrun, try not to post so much with such little said in each post. If you have something else to add, edit your last post. It's not a big problem, I've just noticed it, I don't mean to be mean.
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16858
from jackalotrun
No NOT updated yet!

That was directed at seiromem. o_o

Also, yeah, quintuple-posting is pretty ridiculous. Just edit the last thing you said!

I probably won't get to these again until Thursday, so you know.
Sorry, my fault...
I've added A metroid and a link level (non-Mario pack) just to let you know I don't know to much about Metroid so it will probably need editing
Decky
I'm a dog pirate
19645
Yeah guys, please stop the triple/quadrouple posting - it's severely frowned upon. Thank you :)
arcan
Having a signature is too mainstream. I'm not part of your system!
1866
Man SMBX has been getting laggy whenever I use certain things. Anyone else get this problem?
@arcan
Yes I have this problem sometimes, however it's only for a little while usually.
It gets much worse though if I have another program running...
@deckiller
I sometimes do double posting if I have to do a review, since I use alot of color codes and other text effects, since it is so much easier when you have the buttons to do it.
I'll try to cut down my double posts otherwise too.
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16858
On my old Windows XP Compy, SMBX used to pause for a moment, then speed up a bunch of frames and return to normal. I haven't had any such issues with my newer Compé.

The only things I really know to cause lag in SMBX when playing are:

1. Too many Sparks on-screen at once
2. Lots of moving layers
3. Too much of everything in general

So if you're really lagging, you may just be making something too over-the-top for the program. If what you're doing is nothing fancy, then...it really isn't the best-designed engine anyway.
It happens regardless of what I have on screen.

I tried my level ones with JUST a screen of land and a couple of clouds and it did the
little routine of slowing down and lagging until about 4 secs later it came back.
I restarted and it worked fine.
I believe it's mainly the engine thats to blame, it's not a bad engine IMO but it does take alot of power from my computer.
If I have SMBX and Firefox running at the same time my Norton warns me of processor use nearing 100%...
(With SMBX appearantly taking 90% of it.)

I'm using a Windows 7 (originally vista, but got upgraded about month after purchase) HP laptop.

On a non computer lag related topic, I got Poison Valley in to a decent shape in levels structure (IMO), but I still need to make some of the objects look more poison-ish... Or just darker...
I also checked almost all of the levels I missed, but didn't find anything yet that has not yet been said.