City on the Sea [from WATER BETA]

[Teebonesy]

City on the Sea
by PSN: Teebonesy

You knew it was coming with water: Titanic levels.
Although, strictly speaking this is kind of a "Teebonesy" twist on a Titanic level. It's strange, moody, and ridiculous all at once.

This was an INTENSE labor of love from day 1 in the beta. It took forever, it ran well beyond the limits of the thermometer, and has resulted in my having to strip down certain areas. So you'll be treated to hyper-detailed segments and almost bare segments. At one point in the beta, this literally overheated after being published, and the level became unplayable.

It's an epic as far as my levels go, long and tricky, and right now I'm at about 1/5th completion ratio out of the few hundred plays I've gotten. Hopefully some people stick with it, because some of the coolest stuff is probably at the end.

Onto the goods:

It's an autumn evening in the city, and there's something in the wind...


Leaving the city behind for for the big blue watery road:


The Captain ponders the fate of his ship.


The bustle of the wealthy at the Grand Stair (and will Mm PLEASE give us a "crowd rabble" sound already??)


As dusk sets in on the ocean liner, the chefs are in panic-mode!


The evening's guests, it seems, are a little high-maintenance...


Here's a heart-warming scene from the lower decks!


But, as you might have guessed, this is a WATER level, so things don't go all according to plan on this voyage.


(please note that I've been dealing with some weird glitches with the above-pictured segment. If things don't seem to be working properly for you, you should probably still be able to swim where you need to swim.)

[dajdaj03]

The story, the production, the tone, the visuals, the scenery, the details, the characters, the humor, the gameplay ideas....

...Wow, everything is just perfect!!! The second part is my favorite (when we enter the boat)

You truly have a unique style and really know how to use it!
I'm a little speechless right now
so + HEARTED

[JKthree]

Amazing as always. It does seem a little odd how after you do the pipe puzzle how there's several different ways to choose from, but only one of them has something to do in it (the axe to chop obstacles out of the way)

But anywho, I did a recording! Happy Holidays!

[Watch YouTube Video]

[piggabling]

This was my favorite of your water levels, it was long, fun, and challenging! Don't forget beautiful!

Five stars and a heart!

[ScoutsBoo•]

O.M.G.

Teeb, this level is one of my favoritest levels of all time, I was completely floored by what you've done here. The custom characters, hilarious text, attention to every single detail, the mechanics, the realism and irony, brilliant sense of humor throughout...oh my, I can't even construct a proper sentence to begin to describe how I feel about this level. I still remember when I first played this level and how I was completely awestruck by it, and each time I play it, I feel the same way. *Cue Madonna song*

Your levels are unique and definitely have a Teebonesy flavor to them. And it is called deliciousness. Savored every moment of it, and thank the heavens, you were able to share this with the larger LBP community. Top stuff indeed.

[Teebonesy]

Thanks so much for the support! This level was so unbelievably, UNBELIEVABLY hard on me, that hearing this stuff is more than heart-warming. Sweet, sweet medicine is what it is.

It's not being quite so well-received in the broader LBP community - I think it has the lowest completion ratio so far out of all of my levels. I think last I checked, roughly 1/6th of plays were actual completions? Ouch. I even included a full-on dinner scene spoiler in the description. I like being able to track stats, but now that I can see how my levels are actually doing, it's a wrench to the teeth, each one.

Anyway, I might end up deleting/republishing all of my water levels later down the road, as none of them seem to have "taken" on this go (likely drowning in the water level sea). I've republished a couple of times a day, but it's been almost a week, and only around 200 plays. I'll have to wait and see.

I'm sure some great creators will tackle the Titanic at some point down the road, and I can't wait to see how they come out. My lady kept prodding me during this one to split it into 2 levels, with the entire ship segment being its own separate thing, leaving me room to decorate more and not deal with such a thermometer headache. But seeing as I'm horribly stubborn, I couldn't carve up my baby.

Also, I just remembered this, but before I had published this, and considering it was at the time in closed water beta, I discussed how I did some of the character design in a help thread (without mentioning what level it was from).
Here's a link to my post about my approach to one of the characters in the dinner scene.

[SHENOA77]

Teebonesy! Omg, I was laughing so hard I almost choked on my spit! I wonder what hull mites taste like in stew? Ha!

Excellent visuals. The beginning underwater scene with the cars, train, etc got a "WOW" from me at first glance. Looked awesome underwater. And I loved your style of re-creating the "Ship of Dreams" from the Titanic. The famous staircase was particularly striking to me. And let's not forget the characters. What a hoot. The dialogue kept me entranced and wanting to hear more. Witty. Clever. And very funny.

My only hang up was towards the end. I couldn't really figure my way to the surface and had to drown several times. Maybe just me but perhaps a clear path out to safety?

All in all, fantastic level. Everyone go play it, you won't be sorry you did.

[theswweet•]

this is the beta level i was talking about in the best level ever thread

[IceMaiden]

I cannot wait to play this level the minute I get the chance. It looks awesome.

I'll be back!

Icey

[Teebonesy]

Teebonesy! Omg, I was laughing so hard I almost choked on my spit! I wonder what hull mites taste like in stew? Ha!

Excellent visuals. The beginning underwater scene with the cars, train, etc got a "WOW" from me at first glance. Looked awesome underwater. And I loved your style of re-creating the "Ship of Dreams" from the Titanic. The famous staircase was particularly striking to me. And let's not forget the characters. What a hoot. The dialogue kept me entranced and wanting to hear more. Witty. Clever. And very funny.

My only hang up was towards the end. I couldn't really figure my way to the surface and had to drown several times. Maybe just me but perhaps a clear path out to safety?

All in all, fantastic level. Everyone go play it, you won't be sorry you did.

Thanks so much! the problem toward the end, was that at the end of the ship segment, or the end of the dream segment? I've had some issues with the dream segment getting a bit hung up where you're supposed to "wake up".

The ship segment I've had some unfortunate issues with the pipe-moving puzzle not activating correctly. Otherwise it's mostly a matter of re-tracing your steps but in crazy underwater mode. I myself have had some annoyances getting through the first room of the sinking ship, the engine room. It's something i'd like to fix up, make a bit clearer and easier at some point.

[IceMaiden]

Had a great time playing your level Teebonesy. I loved the visual style of the stage and the characters. The use of water was fantastic, as were the puzzles. I had a great feeling of real panic when I was trying to get out of the ship! I felt just like Rose! Unfortunately I didn't have a Jack to help me!

I also was signed out of the Playstation network just as I was about to reach the scoreboard, boo hiss! Therefore my name won't appear on it but I assure you, I got the highest score!

Great work, well done!

[enodrawkcab]

Ok, so I played this and the rest of your levels in the level showcase and I have come to the conclusion that you are the Tim Burton of lbp.

I can truly say if its one of your levels I know I won't be disappointed. Its beyond me how you get soooo much quality content in a level.

I was gadding around with another player tonight and we hit this level up first. They were so impressed I took them on a tour of your other levels as well.

These levels should be included in any portfolio you have for artistic work you have done. I am amazed, impressed and in awe of your level building skills.

Any chance you can put up a tutorial on how you go about making your stickers and characters?

[Teebonesy]

Any chance you can put up a tutorial on how you go about making your stickers and characters?

Thanks for the kind words! I'd love to do a tutorial on custom stickering actually, as I totally fell in love with it doing Phantom Town and Banana Peeler. Ideally I'd like to do it in video form, but as I'm terrible at organizing such things and keeping motivated, it's a crapshoot whether or not I'll actually get it done or not.

The basic way I do it is to create the object I want, and I go all-out with materials and stickers and corners. I let loose and don't worry at all about the thermomter, which feels lovely. Then I light it and take a screenshot, and use that to sticker a flat piece of cardboard, and then delete the original object.

I didn't do this much in this level particularly, but it's something I do commonly now, and if I went back I would definitely use this to save on some thermometer space in this level, because god knows it desperately needs it.

[shropshirelass•]

Another visually stunning level. Your sheer artistry and originality are evident throughout.

I loved all the story details too - the wackiness and the wit.

Like others, though, I found the way out after the pipe puzzle a little confusing as it seemed possible to get up to the scoreboard very quickly – which made me sure I must have missed a whole chunk of the level somehow. Great fun to play, though. I’m sure I’ll be back to explore some more.

BTW – it looks as if in your version of the Titanic story the ship started from New York and not Southampton…lol!

Anyway, breathtaking stuff, thank you.

[Dexiro]

Wow... seriously xD

The visuals are amazing! The bar scene, the city backdrop, small details like hats left floating with other debris.
Best of all the dream at the beginning with the floating wreckage and the slanted street underwater - and yes i got the twist
Not to mention the awesome characters and dialogue.

Just one thing i thought you could improve though if the thermo lets you.
In a few places i had no idea what i was supposed to be doing, it felt as though some things would be better if they were just a little bigger and some signals like lights indicating doors opening happened off-screen.

That aside though it was still an amazing level
5 stars + heart