Trap McSack! *Now with pictures!*

[TJapan]

Trap McSack! by TJapan
Ace McSack is Back! taking on a new level where point bubbles can be your friend, or your enemy. Be prepared to be surprised by booby traps throughout the level as well as nifty enemies and a themed boss battle.

Hey there everyone. I got a little feedback from MrSupercomputer on this level, and i took most (if not all) of his fantastic advice.

The level is complete now, and has been renamed Trap McSack! many enemies and advanced logic (which is so much fun to puzzle out) as well as a boss battle where you have to collect points to kill the boss while avoiding his explosive ammunition!

I updated the enemies, which includes sea serpents, alligators, and deep sea fangly fish.

This level features lots of atmospheric/lighting changes, water sections, music, and great camera angles. (at least thats what my wife says)

I will do at least 5 f4f here, but you must include which level's feedback you'd like me to do. I love playing all your levels, as i know i'll never get an h4h or a "ramp" and everyone puts so much thought into thir levels here.

anyway, play away! and i hope that you enjoy my newest level!

[mrsupercomputer]

Sorry I wasn't able to get in a play test with you some more, but I look forward to giving this finished version a play soon!

[ShadowKnight]

Hello TJapan. I am writing this note as I play the level. You can get stuck on the roof of the first elevator. You can do this by jumping to the top of the moving platforms where the hungry hippos sticker is, then jump off to the left. This should make sackboy jump to the top of the elevator. What gets him stuck up there is that the elevator gate is raised, so they can't jump down and are stuck. A possible fix might be to add a thick layer that won't allow sackpeople to jump off to the left. Another point is when you are getting pulled by the serpent you can get stuck on the little pillars containing the score bubbles. If you fall in between I believe is the 2nd set of pillars, you will get stuck and can not get out. This is especially worse if you stop your boat in front of the pillars and then fall down. Then you are REALLY stuck and have to retry with your sackboy. A possible fix would be to make the holes and gap, thicker and extend into the water so that you can swim out. Sometimes, the boat may have momentum even though the grab switch isn't triggered. This may cause the boat to continue to drift forward. Eventually this drifting will put you in front of the serpent and may cause the serpent to flip the boat. Although this is a minor flaw and may never exist in real online play. When you get to the part where you pull the green sponge with the arrow, the bridge collapses, yet it disappears. Maybe this is due to overturning of the bolt? Also, you can access the area to the right of the submerged fish with the treasure. You can jump over the barricade and hit an invisible wall. Sadly on the 2nd retry the bridge broke again and didn't let me complete it. And that's as far as I could get. All in all, I like the music, you have impressive and dynamic creatures and the level layout is quite nice and engaging. I will be happy to help you once you fixed the bridge part and in the future. I particularly like the sewer portion of the level. It's very nice, perfect lighting. Great Job! If you could look up Eternal Space I: The Darkest of All Matters, by ShadowKnight145. I'd appreciate your feedback. Thanks!

[DarkDedede]

Ok I got to playing it, but I ran into a problem. I scared the second eel so much that it fell apart, and when I tried to jump over his head, the game kept moving me to the front layer. I couldn't continue past that point.

[TJapan]

@shadowknight- you dont have a thread for your level here for me to leave feedback on... so i'll leave it here i guess..

I played it just now, and i gotta say... that level has a great feel and fun gameplay. the level worked fine for me, and everything went smoothly, (well, as smoothly as a space battle gets i guess...)

i only found 2 things to really criticise...

1- the point where you shove those "push" things down confused me for a minute, because i was pushing and pulling them before the barrier went down, thinking i was missing something... then of course when i could use them, i didnt think of it for a bit. i'm pretty dumb though, so it could just be me...

2- buzz! buzz! buzz! BUZZ!BUZZBUZZBUZZBUZZ! I think i went a bit insane. you used that sound a lot... my wife mentioned that that was pretty annoying... and she was only in the room for a couple seconds.

otherwise, the shaking, sound effects, fantastic lighting, and that excellent little hologram all put together to get 5 stars a tricky tag and a heart from me!




ahh yes, and in case anyone cares. most of the bugs have been addressed, and version 0.5 is now released. next i'll be working on an update to the boss battle so any feedback on him would be helpful.

[TJapan]

wooo!pictures!
DSC_0011.jpgDSC_0023.jpgDSC_0006.jpgDSC_0012.jpgDSC_0007.jpg






Also, I updated the boss battle, and now the fight makes better sense. you kinda know whats going on better.

i added in many sound effects, fixed many many many bugs, and now it seems pretty rock solid, after my awesome beta-testing wife went through it about 15 times.

all the bugs in this thread have now been addressed and fixed. Please, oh please give it another playthrough and let me know what you think. bugs, improvements, anything you've got. i'll even take a "this level sucks!" comment.

anyway, any other comments, suggestions etc will be addressed in the level if it is appropriate and the thermo will allow. so your feedback is not only appreciated but extremely useful too!

[DarkDedede]

I'll give it another go when I get time later.

[CCubbage]

I played this a bit ago.... I've always been a fan of your Capybara level and I wanted to see what kind of insane stuff you've come up with now.... I was NOT disappointed! I love the crazy, innovative ideas that stretch throughout this level. One of the things I enjoyed the most was the work you put into the movement of your creatures. They really brought the level to life. As well, the idea of the sinking ceiling while you're trying to pick up point bubbles was great!

I don't really have any critisisms - it all worked nicely. Great job!

[DarkDedede]

I still don't get how collecting the green things destroys the boss. Oh, and I noticed that the boss can be defeated by standing in the corner.

[pickled-punk]

A very entertaining and diverse level. I especially liked the creatures: the movement of the electric sea serpents was very evocative. The lanternfish and crocodiles were nicely designed also.

I like the fact that there are different paths to traverse the level. I played the level a second time to take the other route. (But first I went to get the capybara-sticker from your other cool level, to get to the 'hidden' bubbles area.)

I like the fact that you can already see the scoreboard as a monitor below, when you climb across the glass dome.

The boss-fight is very cool. Rather hard to dodge all the exploding packets, but off course ther are eternal respawning points close at hand.
The boss looks great, and the combination with the calm & rural background really makes it stand out.

Couldn't find any bugs. Great job!

[TJapan]

Level Complete! So, Now the level has everything i think a person could want.

Darkdedede told me that he didnt know how he was killing the boss. FIXED- now you'll know.

I sped up the sewer monster ride

changed some of the lighting, (now the beginning isn't as dark)

changed some obstacles

removed some cheap kill dangers,

changed a lot about the boss, but kept the same mechanics in,

More sound effects wooo!

I HAD TO DELETE THE OLD ONE. if you hearted this level, i apologize, but i had to remove it. the game wouldn't let me overwrite it for some reason.

I also added in lots of reading, to explain the level, mechanics, and progress the story.


Please, folks, What i am really hoping to get out of this level is a better understanding of how to make fun and interesting levels. please let me know all the good bad and ugly details about your experience, and i'll be sure to get you feedback of equal depth and value to you as a creator. thanks!


ALSO! Thank you Pickled Punk for your help with making the boss better. MrSuperComputer, i appreciate your thoughts and assistance with this level. and thanks to Vortex2002 for your Beta testing and excellent feedback. And thanks to Darkdedede and everyone else in this thread for your insightful feedback, and great support!

[CCubbage]

I'm on it when I get home! Looking forward to seeing the changes.

[PaddyJ]

Loved the level when i played it, but on the boss it should be more obvious that you've hurt it when you collect a bubble(maybe glue a red LED light behind the boss and make the camera shake and the light come on and a sound play when you collect a bubble)

[TJapan]

@PaddyJ- Did you play it since the update? There's been a lot of changes... you should check it out. The point bubble thing is fixed...

[CCubbage]

I played it.... boss is MUCH better! I liked the boss explanation before you face him, and the effects were much improved.