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 can't bring myself to even open SMBX. I probably won't add that boss fight to my level.
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16948
from Link_2112
I can't bring myself to even open SMBX. I probably won't add that boss fight to my level.


Could you finish it up without a boss? We already have a lot of boss levels anyway.

nin8halos' new levels are the last I need to look over. Apologies for taking so long! I'll have my remaining feedback up tomorrow for sure. And then final level construction will begin...
It was going to be more of a sub boss. Just kill this wave of things, then the next. But yeah, I'll just put the star up there and call it a level.
Nin8halos:
what are mystic ropes?

My apologizes I should've elaborated.
I meant those bits of the two way rope bridges that act as conveyor belts of some sort. It looks really odd in the level...
But, if you don't think so I won't mind, It is just my opinions...

Final weeks are upon thee!
or sumthin! Ye olde speech is also not in my list of favourite vocabularies.
author=apa649
My apologizes I should've elaborated.
I meant those bits of the two way rope bridges that act as conveyor belts of some sort. It looks really odd in the level...
But, if you don't think so I won't mind, It is just my opinions...

Oh, the conveyor belts. Well that's how they were in SMB3.

I've updated my levels. I hope I did it right.
Isrieri
"My father told me this would happen."
6155
Something terrible has happened.

I have accidentally removed myself from RMN 3.
No, I don't know how I did it. It was an accident. My mouse buttons get weird on me sometimes. =(

Am I out of the project for good or can I be reinstated? If not, can I at least PM my levels or something? I would hate to think that all of my work has gone to waste.
If it happened recently, I'm pretty sure hali already has your levels.
If you are going to update then I believe you should pm hali, and a link to the lockerfiles.

Don't worry I'm sure hali has everything under control.

Also I suggest getting a better mouse, I did that couple days ago and life has been easier.
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16948
from Isrieri
I'M DEAD

Yep, you're pretty boned No worries! I have the most recent copies of your levels that were posted. If you need to update them, you can upload them to your locker on RMN and PM them to me. I wouldn't kick you out just for that! |D
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16948
Ultimate feedback time! If your level's name is light green, then it's perfected as far as I'm concerned. If your level's name is yellow, then it's accepted, but could still be better in some ways. If your level's name is red, it's denied and has deal breakers that must be remedied soon!

Without further ado...

~
(chain level group)

Narbacular Drop

AncientNoob

Amazing
Deal Breakers

- the real joke is how I treat this like a normal level.

apa649

Goomba Caves

Hammer Hideout
Deal Breakers

- “Runtime error 9: subscript out of range.” I got this fatal error when I threw a POW block at a Hammer Bro near the end of the section with ghost house music. I dunno what caused it or how you’d fix it.

- the death slide. The one where you put a free 1-up to soften the blow of anyone who slid to their doom. No. Bad apa. Slide them into spikes, not a death pit.

- if the player blows it on a challenge run after reaching the checkpoint, they can’t try again from the level’s start. Hide the checkpoint object if they take on a challenge.

- if the player’s time runs out in a speed run, change the music or something so they know they’ve failed.

Nitpicks

- why is the door to the challenges locked? It seems like a lot of unnecessary steps, especially since the player will have to try them both more than once.

- HB’s still play the ‘all bros killed’ music even if you don’t take Peach’s challenge.

- although it’s a secret, it’s unintuitive to be able to enter a pipe from the side when it’s suspended in the air. I’d relocate this pipe entrance to the ground floor just beneath it. Knock out some of those blue bricks and place sections of pipe in the wall. The entrance would look like a wall, but the pipe parts could tip the player off.

- not sure about the change to the ghost house tune. I think the castle theme would fit the level’s style better on the whole, even if Phantos are supposed to creep you out.

- this level is too big for its own good. There’s obviously a lot of bonus stuff to find, but deciphering the correct path from all the optional stuff is very difficult. The checkpoint feels like it’s placed half a section too early, and it gets very tedious to explore after dying a few times. Also, the arrow pointing to the regenerating POW block is misleading since that’s not the correct way to go.

- it is insanely hard to unite the key and the door. I’ve brought up risk and reward to you before, but this is just ridiculous. I’d be expecting a secret star for a feat like that, unless I’m really missing something here.

- have Peach disappear when you hit her challenge block. It says the challenge will begin when you talk to her, but you have to talk to her outside to make it happen.

- eighth (8th) nitpick: you probably don’t need to spell out both the word and the number on the signs telling the player how many bros are present.

- is it really necessary to warn the player not to take the secret path in the final section for the HB challenge?

Mushroom Factory

Poison Valley

Sand Tombs

Sky Rush

DarklordKeinor

Arctic Adventure

Bob-Omb Cave

Bowser's Lava Castle
Nitpicks

- I hadn’t noticed this in SMBX before, but there’s a corner tile you can use to complete castle floors like the ones this stage uses. It’s right beneath its counterparts in the same block group. However, it seems you prefer the stairs another way, so I’ll drop it after this.


Forest Stroll

Goomba's Pass

Jellyfish Lake

Mushroom Valley

The Night Sky So High

The Stronghold

Davenport

Booster's Canyon
Deal Breakers

- sorry, but it’s still possible to get stuck in your switch block pits. You either need to knock out the top row of blocks or consider more carefully how the bricks get broken when the shells bounce around. Set it up so it works the way it ought to.

If You Don’ts

- your castle at the beginning doesn’t line up with the ground. There’s a small black X block in the SMB3 background tiles. If you place those behind the sand under the castle, it won’t look incomplete.

- you have an ordinary mushroom in a block at the start.

- your quicksand is inconsistent in some places. The sand underground is background (while all the rest is fore). Also, there are some background quicksand tiles in places they shouldn’t be, like the orange pipe between the two huge bricks and in the digging sand before the switch block wall. I’ve made this an If You Don’t ‘cuz I know it’s tedious, but I don’t mind rooting them all out for you.

Nitpicks

- the spots with sand underwater look better with bricks in between them. I’d set up your other oases like the one before the start.

- this stage is still drowning in power-ups. I’d nuke every other one.

- the coins on your sand slide don’t line up with Mario slipping down. He misses about half of them if he rides it the whole way. The airborne ones need moved down about one tile each. Also, Mario lands right in the quicksand. You need to change the setup a bit so it works like it should.

- well, um, now the 1-up at the end is just a freebie, and the blue coins warping you back to the other side aren’t necessary. I don’t know what you might do with this now; it just doesn’t make much sense.

Gloom Catacombs

Molten Valley
If You Don’ts

- your P-switches need to be a generators.

- you’re leaving ordinary mushrooms in blocks again…

- your bridge tiles are incomplete! There’s a SMW background tile that’s supposed to go on top of them.

- your final suspension bridge is incomplete. It needs one more angled line tile.

Nitpicks

- good grief, what program do you save these files in that they come out so grainy? Your backdrop looks atrocious. I’d get a better image editor and try again.

- since you can’t pass the section before the checkpoint without a flying block anyway, take out the hole in the spike log so the player doesn’t think they need to ride Birdo’s egg through.

Sky Mountain
Nitpicks

- your blocks at the start are a tile too high.

- the sky door is a viable solution, but a pipe might make more sense (Mario sense, anyway).

- that tanooki suit is a total freebie. It should be hidden better!

Splinter Bay
Deal Breakers

- if you fall in the water, you have to backtrack almost to the start just to board the boats again. Make it easier for them to board again between the ships; at one spot, there’s a bridge I thought I could jump up through, but when I tried to, I hit my head and died on a fish.

- upon closer inspection, that bridge is actually made of ice and full of bitey plants! No. Just no. Get that mess outta there.

- regarding the first deal breaker, the player is very likely to fall in the water before the second boat because the Mega Mole runs by too fast. At least make it turn at the cliff instead of walking right off. Or even better, replace it with a Shy Guy that already does.

- if you’re going to resprite Bowser, make it something that actually behaves like Bowser. Wendy has never thrown hammers or breathed fire before, and she’s always been safe to jump on, too. Switch her sprites over to a normal wand-wielding koopa kid or ditch her entirely. Does this section really need a random boss you don’t even have to fight?

- your saw jumping section is remarkably difficult; and I’ve been through GRS’ Spinning Hazard! Move the saw paths closer together so the jumps aren’t so tricky. Seriously, I only got through because I kept a propeller block.

- if the player falls in the water at the end, they have to play the entire level again. Refer to deal breaker one; make it possible to board the boat again from the back, but block off the passage underneath so the player can’t just swim the whole level.

If You Don’ts

- you’re leaving ordinary mushrooms in blocks again. I don’t know why I bother to tell you.

- a corner of one of the climbable fences in the boat is unfinished. There’s a sprite in the backgrounds section you can use to fill it properly.

Nitpicks

- RMN Bros. 3 is meant to be a single-player game, so you don’t have to accommodate player two with additional power-ups.

- your water looks very grainy! I don’t know what program your using to edit these sprites, but you should try saving them as png while you’re working, then only save as gif when you’re finished. If it’s Paint on Windows 7, you’re gonna need a new program (I know how bad it messes up gifs).

- your ship is two different colors! You should edit the lighter pieces so they match.

- I question the likelihood of Geno calling anyone ‘dude’.

- don’t place doors if they’re impossible to reach. It’s misleading to the player.

- the ships are wooden on the outside, but have metal interiors? I’d pick a different background for the inner area.

- why are the fire flowers in the boat not inside blocks?

Deckiller

Oasis Ruins

Triad Airship
Nitpicks

- since this is a proper auto-scrolling level now, there’s no need for the bubbled fire flower. Especially since there’s a leaf in the block nearby it anyway. I’d also put the bubbled mushroom before the fight in a block instead.

Desmo360

Ghosthouse Blues

Faenon

Greg's Garden
ineligible

Stop the Clock
Nitpicks

- no BGM?

- this felt short, and a bit uninspiring as well. It could do with more variance than just the flat ground along the bottom. I think what I’d do is to expand the level more to the right. Add another section where you snag a clock and navigate through enemies, and put some normal level stuff between the timer segments. As it is, it kinda just looks thrown together. It’s like…a raw idea.

Yoshi Stables
ineligible

GreatRedSpirit

Spinning Hazard

Idida1

Awesome Hills

The Cave

Isrieri

Castle Notsobad
Nitpicks

- I still think the vines you use are too brightly colored. There are others available that are less vibrant, like the yellow SMB2 ones. I think they’d look better.

Labyrinth
Nitpicks

- I still think making the pipe entrances a different color wouldn’t make the maze too easy. Remember, you know it like the back of your hand because you made it. The player won’t be able to distinguish which pipes go where until they enter them and find out. Knowing which pipes they can enter just saves them a lot of unnecessary squatting.

- a coin arrow or trail in the last room would be helpful so the player knows it’s safe to jump down.

Power Plant
Nitpicks

- the tiles this place is built out of work, but they’re kinda dull and repetitive. I think you could put some of SMBX’s Metroid tiles to good use here. It’d help the level feel less visually bland. If nothing else, at least fill in all that empty space the level’s floating around in.

Stratosprint
Nitpicks

- I see that the wall speeds up when you hit the checkpoint, but I’ve still never seen it beyond that point. Maybe I’m just too good at SMBX, but it’s very easy for me to outdistance that wall and never be inhibited by it. I really think having a second wall appear behind the checkpoint when its collected would be a good idea. It keeps the player from losing the wall completely and makes starting over from the checkpoint less of a cakewalk. It’s an easy thing to add, too, so…come oooooon.

jackalotrun
Aerial Arsenal
Deal Breakers

- this fight is beyond easy given that the clown car is immune to bullet bills. Put in a projectile generator with something that can actually hurt it.

- the fight’s even easier if you ditch the clown car and just stand with the billy gun normally. It fires much faster and nothing gets through it. Again, I suggest you follow my example in Mr. L; add a text file for the billy gun npc that disallows picking it up.

- the floor beneath the clown car should be visible so the player knows it’s not a cliff!

- even if the fight were harder, the level needs more to it than this. It’s a finale without an introduction! That ‘arbitrary dungeon’ before it makes it feel like a level instead of just a fight.

Nitpicks

- the sign you placed in the first section isn’t necessary. I already mentioned how the clown car can drop items in the Tutorial. It’s also impossible to lose the gun because you placed a floor beneath the clown car.

- Mother Brain is a futuristic foe. Why the heck is she riding around in a wooden airship? Use the Metroid tiles and give her something that fits her theme more. Also, this fight would probably look better against a night or space background.

Air Assault
Deal Breakers

- in spite of being slightly longer, this is somehow even worse than Aerial Arsenal. The player can afford to lose the billy gun in the first section, but they’re completely boned if they drop it in the second.

- killing the Snifits is very easy and sucks all the difficulty out of the fight. The Bullet Bills and Banzai Bills can’t do anything to you, and Mother Brain is completely helpless. It’s so easy, it’s practically a joke.

- the first section isn’t long enough to justify the level’s existence. The fight is too easy to count as a fight. This stage is failing on a fundamental level, and it’s gonna need a lot more than this to be any good.

Nitpicks

- see my Aerial Arsenal nitpick regarding Mother Brain and how wooden airships clash with her style.

Blasted Boos
Deal Breakers

- as clever as your use of the rocket boards is with level wrap on, the player can’t ride them from one side of the screen to the other. To make this more clear, you should place walls on the screen sides. Leave holes for the rocket boards to pass through, but block all the rest so the player can’t ride them off-screen.

- in the spike wall section, there’s an Eerie that will gank the player if they’re small and run underneath a platform just before it. I can understand putting one there, but move it further back so the player has time to react. It’s very tight as-is.

If You Don’ts

- when a stage has level wrap, you need blocks off-screen so the player doesn’t fall when crossing from one side to the other.

- roto-discs must always be orbiting something! Even when they’re Boo Buddies.

Nitpicks

- King Boo looks pretty good, but defeating him is too easy. The “fight” may as well not even be there for what it’s worth.

- Fleet Glide’s a good action song, but it really breaks the mood the level was setting before. The imposing castle theme would still work fine with your speedy trap puzzle.

- the sign post isn’t necessary; the player can infer everything it says just from looking at the room.

Blazing Battalion
Deal Breakers

- this is quite possibly the shortest stage you’ve made yet. Even Brilliant Battle lasts longer than this, and it’s only one screen! You’ve gotta put more into it than this. There is such a thing as too short, and this is it.

Nitpicks

- if you don’t know how to make the tanks move, look it up in SMBX’s manual. Having them all just sitting there is indescribably sad.

Boss Blitz
Deal Breakers

- you need another power-up somewhere in there; I’d put it after the first three fights. These guys aren’t as easy for some players to fight.

- it’s possible to fall in the lava after collecting the star.

Nitpicks

- this is really dull with the room being the same every time!

Boss Blitz Bonanza
Nitpicks

- this was a lot better than the original boss blitz, but my biggest problem with it is still the same as the first. The boss rooms are really bland! They’re better styled to the bosses inside them now, but they’re still basically all the same design: a flat, boring square. Mouser’s was the best if only because of the elevation difference. And even that wasn’t so enthralling! You’ve got that whole screen to work with. Spice it up! Add platforms! Add different heights! This isn’t No Items Fox Only Final Dest. Give the player something to think about.

Cold Clouds
If You Don’ts

- this level has the same name as one of Tomstar’s. I’d change it to something more fitting.

Nitpicks

- the level’s plenty doable, but the bgm is faster-paced than the autoscrolling, and it does get old after a while. I’d increase the speed at which the stage moves.

Crystal Cave

Dangerous Den
If You Don’ts

- the block you placed under your pipes to connect them with the ground is too bright a green. You should find something better suited.

Nitpicks

- Fleet Glide isn’t really the best fighting music. I’m fond of it, but it’s better suited to action than battle, if you get what I mean.

Desert Dunes
If You Don’ts

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

Nitpicks

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

- it feels like it could use a few more enemies and coins.

Epic Elites
Nitpicks

- pretty good, but this stage suffers from a lot of the blandness your earlier ones do. It has so much empty space! The castle could use a ceiling, and not just one straight across the top, either. You could add in more blocks, coins…anything so it doesn’t look and feel so empty.

Hilly Hyrule
Nitpicks

- you’re either not following my 8-second rule, or you count seconds twice as fast as you should. This level is very short.

- as a Zelda tribute stage, it doesn’t do itself much justice. Throwing in SMBX’s Zelda baddies does not a Zelda stage make. A good start would be to make Link the character of choice for the level. Use some of the Zelda 2 background tiles in the castle part. Maybe include a locked door to get back out of it, and hide the key somewhere inside.

- although fire flowers and leaves aren’t Zelda power-ups, having just heart containers is no better than a stage with just mushrooms. You already mix some of the Mario in with the Zelda anyway, so give the player something more to work with.

- There’s a lot of open space in this stage that’s just begging to be filled. Put in some bricks, floating rupees, or even just some background clouds in the sky so it doesn’t look so barren.

Jackalotrun's Castle
Nitpicks

- are these ships defending your castle or your foyer? It seemed like the first section should be set outside with SMB3’s tanks backdrop or something.

- the bombs fired by your ships are hardly any threat at all. Their initial fire hits the ground well before you ever reach them, and you can run by before they fire again. The generators should be a little faster.

- your solution to the yellow pipe on a 90 degree angle doesn’t quite work. The metal crates in the SMB3 sizable block section work much better for this.

- wouldn’t the room Boom-Boom’s in be made of wood instead of…whatever the heck those blue castle blocks are made of?

- the change of BGM in the final section is rather noticeable. I think you’d be better off with the same BGM for the whole thing.

- how is Birdo styled to be you? You didn’t change her in any way. This level is short and weird.

Lava Lair
Nitpicks

- the pipe you enter to get the secret star section is kinda weird looking. I’d go with the classic SMB1 pipe formation that used to lead to underground levels, and maybe make the player enter from the side, too. I found my way in purely by accident.

Mad Metroid

Mother Brain Mother Ship
Deal Breakers

- although this fight’s fairly well executed, without a level to go along with it, it just doesn’t justify its inclusion. It’s simply not enough to stand alone.

Nitpicks

- well, that was at least a little more challenging than the previous Mother Brain fights you submitted (not much more, though). Chances are she’ll get you once or twice, but once you learn you have to beat her before she scrolls off-screen, it’s almost too easy. You could make it a bit tougher by leaving out the extra billy guns and maybe using pass-through bridge tiles the player would have to kick it up through. Putting MB in a glass box would make it tougher to defeat her, too, though you may need to add one more floor to compensate for the extra time.

- as before, these wooden airships just don’t fit Mother Brain very well, and it’d look a lot better using a ship made from Metroid tiles, or anything made out of metal really.

Rockin' Retro
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.

Speed Spurt
Nitpicks

- this level is basically fine for what it is, but I think it could stand to be a bit harder. I increased the wall’s speed to 5 and was still able to beat it, but it was a much more interesting race. That’s the speed I’d recommend; any further than that and it becomes nearly impossible.

Vivid Void
Nitpicks

- my advice is the same as before. Make it longer, add more items, and level wrap would be sweet.

Wooden World

kentona

Ghostwall

Mairo vs. The Tree Base

Supra Mairo Bors

Supra Mairo Bors: Boswer's Castl

Supra Mairo Bors: Lost Leevls

Supra Mairo Bors 2: Dessert

Supra Mairo Bors 2: Whale Whale Whale

Supra Mairo Bors 3: Agnry Sun

Supra Mairo Bors 3: Clowds

Supra Mairo Bors 3: Pippes

Supra Mairo Wrold: Crush Cavs

Link_2112

Cavetastic Voyage
Deal Breakers

- being able to climb the palm trees is a nice touch, but I’m afraid I can’t allow it. This is the only time in the whole game you’re able to, so it’s an inconsistency I just can’t overlook. You’ll need to change them to something more obviously climbable.

- the vines you need to cross the underground chasm fail to spawn if you collected the clock.

- the height variances of the ceiling in the chasm section make it extremely difficult to cross as super Mario. I eventually started skipping the mushroom after the checkpoint just to stop hitting my head. This part is unreasonably hard, particularly the speedy vine at the end. If it were slower, or there weren’t Powies underneath, or there wasn’t a swooping Tweeter overhead, or the ceiling weren’t too low, it might be less irritating. One or all of those things need adjusted.

If You Don’ts

- BGM???

Major Linkage
If You Don’ts

- "Beware! Once you choose your path(insert comma) you must follow it to the end." YOU SAID YOU COMMA’D IT BUT YOU SO DIDN’T

- YOSHI COINS FFFF

- Um…Sparks? Are they pending respriting or something? (hint: yes, they are)

Nitpicks

- I got killed in the forest maze. I fell off the cliff after teleporting on the lower path. I think you may want to reroute some warps so it’s truly impossible. I checked in the editor, and I’m not sure what went wrong, but spawning Link on the platform above should solve it permanently. Also, although it follows the same pattern as the age-old puzzle it’s based off of…I don’t remember how to get through, and the player may not either. A hint somewhere would be most helpful (read: necessary).

- the fairy rupee trail is really neat, but the rest of the trail doesn’t appear if you miss a rupee. Unless that was your intention, could you make it so the last rupee in each trail makes the next layer appear instead of having to gather them all?

- one of the NPCs in the jail cells disappears sometimes. You can still talk to her, and she reappears when you move around, but it’s weird. I’m guessing this is due to the MAJOR LINKAGE going on in this level. If this area causes problems, maybe you should only have four cells instead of six.

- if the P bag is a 1-up, I think the heart container ought to be a 3-up. Considering how obscure the solution to that puzzle is, I think that’d be a more fair reward.

Smash, Bro
If You Don’ts

- you forgot to reset P1’s start

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

Vanilla Lake
Deal Breakers

- Ludwig can jump off the edges of the screen, leaving the player trapped. He must be enclosed.

- Unfinished!

If You Don’ts

- there’s a collision mask issue with your jutting spikes. You can see a box around them in the underground section. Also, they can be killed with fireballs, so you may want to make them immune.

mariomanty2

RMN Super Beach Level!
If You Don’ts

- plain ol’ mushrooms in blocks are a no-no. Knock out the extra one at the start and replace it with a fire flower or something.

Nitpicks

- for a level this short and easy, you have about twice as many power-ups as you need. Some of them are barely a screen length apart! I’d take out all but two of them.

- like I just said, this stage is really short! You could stick a checkpoint where the star is now and make it twice as long. It’s certainly not bad as-is, but it could definitely use more meat.

nin8halos

Blood Ocean
Nitpicks

- since fireballs are useless against everything but bloopers and the tail is such a close-range weapon, I’d rather see the stage’s other power-ups turned into ice flowers. I saw you wondering why so many levels have only one power-up type before. Well…truth is, that’s something I encourage. Generally, one power-up type will suit a stage better than the other two, and keeping it consistent helps ensure the player will have something useful to work with. So, yeah, all ice flowers please! Though the HB suit can stay.

- it’s hard to tell when that lava lotus skeleton is about to go off. Could you edit it sprites so it moves more like normal?

Coffee and Donuts

Coffee and Donuts 2
Nitpicks

- first section could really use a power-up somewhere between the first and the shoe.

Fortress Aflame

Frosty Tower

Mario in Heat
Nitpicks

- first section could probably use a second power-up somewhere.

- the blue spinny guy’s death effect appears to be off a bit.

- getting in the secret area is needlessly difficult, especially considering it’s fairly tough down there. Take the guesswork out of reaching the entrance pipe (ie a platform to land on that’s not beneath the ceiling or wider screen so the player doesn’t lose track of Mario up above).

- since met hats are wider than shells, they don’t fall down single-tile holes like the one at the end of the secret area. Don’t screw over a player who thinks they’re safe kicking the helmet down the hole (like me).

- the boss health meter noise at the start of the fight is cute, but if the battle takes more than 45 seconds, it’ll play again when the song loops. Most players would probably have won or lost by then, but it’s still a possibility.

Ruins of Muda

Satellite of Love
Nitpicks

- the springy-lookin’ dark pipes that extend from the floor to the ceiling in places blend in very well with the ship’s backdrop. It’s not a huge issue, but they can take you by surprise if you’re focused elsewhere.

- I’m not sure if it’s a huge issue, but Sparks have been known to cause lag on weaker computers, and having so many going in that one spot could be too much. I’d knock out every other one just to be safe.

- the checkpoint could use a power-up nearer to it, or at least one you don’t have to kick an enemy into to claim.

Shell Game
Nitpicks

- could only be better with periodic shell spawners instead of the back2start pipes. Otherwise, it works quite well!

Woodcutter Castle

outcry312

Forest Castle

Snow Mountain Castle

Ratty524

Tomb of the Toadstool Emperor

seiromem

Airship G

Block Sea
If You Don’ts

- a chime telling the player they found all the coins is absolutely necessary.

Nitpicks

- Satrun? You trollin' me?

- although there are more red coins than normal, none of them are hidden if god-awful hard places to find. Still, though, eight feels like a more natural number to seek, and I’m sure you could part with three of the less remarkable ones.

- all those mushrooms underwater were rather depressing. Fire flowers would’ve helped a whole lot more, considering they actually, y’know, let you kill fish. I’d replace every bubbled mushroom with a ? block’d flower.

- Metroid pedestal? Wouldn’t an SMB2 vase fit better?

Dr. Toadly

Dr. Toadly's Return

Dr. Toadly's Revenge

Funklen Forest

Ghastly Ruins
If You Don’ts

- P1’s start is misplaced.

- pipes you can enter from the side should have a platform next to them!

- as clever a job as you did hiding the secret star, it needs to be in a separate section than the ordinary one. That’s an SMBX thing.

Hotel Heights

Jungle Cavern
If You Don’ts

- your green Blarggs don’t line up with their collision mask properly.

- those giant fuzzies look completely awful. If you’re going to resprite the saws as fuzzies, use the smaller vesion. It’s in the graphics pack along with the ugly giant one you already have!

Magma Caverns

Mario in the Mines!
Nitpicks

- Ninji crushing you against the ceiling is about the cheapest way to die ever.

- this level has a neat concept, but it was kinda short! Maybe have Mario descend into the mine during the day, then have to climb back up to his house at night? You could have a little transition message display when he gets to the door at the bottom. As is, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense how he ends up right back at the surface. o.o

Partners in Prime
Deal Breakers

- if the player loses the Ninji in some places, they can become stuck hopelessly (even unable to kill themselves!). You’ll need to look over the level carefully and eliminate any such no-win situations.

If You Don’ts

- however absurdly rude this Ninji may be, I’ll thank you not to put any cussing in SRB3!

- you’re missing an off-screen block near the bottom of the stage. You can fall between the level sides and end up wall-zipping.

Nitpicks

- Ninji is SO SLOW! Couldn’t you increase the NPC’s movement speed even a little? It might throw off some of his jumps, but it’d take a lot of the tedium out of this.

Peach's Stroll

Pipeworks

Shrooms in the Night Sky

SMB2

Snow Tomb
Nitpicks

- my Compé survived all the sparks in this level, but others may encounter lag. I’d try to keep no more than three within range of each other just to be safe.

- I only just noticed this; no one will ever find that secret room with the pipe to enter it off-screen and the vine leading to it invisible. Move the pipe down a tile to tip the player off. You can still leave the block invisible, so it’s not completely obvious.

Spike Palace

The Factory

Solitayre

Green Suede Shoes

Tomstar

Brilliant Battle
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
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.

Great Grasslands
If You Don’ts

- your pipes look like they’re floating above the grassy ground. There are a few ways to fix this; take a look at the pipes in kentona’s Pippes level, or DarklordKeinor’s Mushroom Valley. You can make them look connected either of those ways.

Nitpicks

- the underground section was very small and delivered me right to the checkpoint. Then I found that the pipe to enter it was a hop and a skip away from the checkpoint anyway. This level really needs to be longer.

- that tanooki suit was practically a freebie! The most I’d hide in that spot is a 1-up shroom.

UPRC

Mario in a Flash

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

I left out most of my If-You-Don'ts because I'll be looking over every level carefully before compiling the game anyway. So I spared you the bother!

Construction of the final level will now begin. You have until I complete it to make the changes I described for your levels above. Remember how fast I got my stages done? Yeah. This won't take long. I suggest you manage your time well.
LEECH
who am i and how did i get in here
2599
Im perfect, im perfect, dadadadooo.
:P
Thanks, updating..
------------------------------------------------------
Status: All aforementioned bugs fixed.
it's Supra Mairo Bors 3: Clowds
halibabica
RMN's Official Reviewmonger
16948
It's what?
is it too late? i can fix the problems
I believe you siad it took about 2 days...
I'll probably get an update out tonight, hopefully I'll get most of the problems out.
Damn smbx and it's lousy coding, making me have to fix the engines problems.
Last edited by halibabica on 04/03/2012 10:14 PM

hmmmm xD you did what?

so is there a deadline for this current phase?
http://rpgmaker.net/users/DarklordKeinor/locker/Bowsers_Lava_Castle.zip

Okay, let's see if it updated right. Sorry about being a pain with that. I never understood what I was doing wrong with them. Either way, this should resolve the issue.
Updated levels again. Here's a link to Mario in Heat, in case anyone else wants to play too: http://rpgmaker.net/users/nin8halos/locker/Mario_in_Heat.zip

I can't seem to get the death effect on the spinny blue guys to work right. If anyone can figure it out, you're awesome. I also can't find a version of the boss theme without the energy bar sound. I might have to get my friend to just extend the track for a couple minutes or so.
Isrieri
"My father told me this would happen."
6155
Just tried out Mario in Heat.
And that sir, is how it is done.

Mario in Heat, Power Plant, and Mario in a Flash. You, me, and UPCR are now the mega man triumvirate. Even though you say the spinny guys' deaths aren't quite right it still looks okay to me. Very fun stuff! Especially the boss and the disappearing blocks.

Now I look totally lazy because you guys actually went and made your levels "aesthetically accurate."