Castle Eggman Zone Act 1 - 3/10
Castle Eggman has a reputation as a very hard theme to come up with good designs for. While of course this is much better than the Final Demo attempt (which would have made for a rather mediocre custom map, but as an official was way too unoriginal), this is still very weak. Unlike other sub-par stages, this one will not be easy to fix, because it actually has too few interesting gameplay ideas. Removing bad ideas is one thing, but coming up with more will be hard. Now, let's come up with examples of bad ideas, shall we? The tree trunks with spiraling staircases are just awful. Whoever thought of this needs to be shot *runs from Mystic* In all honesty, it's just not a cool idea at all, it's just boring. Similarly, the enemy trap after that is not that great either. It cannot be avoided unless you already know it's there, in which case I guarantee you everyone will skip it. Combatting Sharps is a pain in the ass, and that lone Crawla must be a troll.
I'm sure there was a great idea behind the lake room where both paths merge, I really do. I think I can even sort of imagine how it was supposed to be. What should be obvious, however, is that the end result does not compare to that idea. In theory, it's all there: the moss, the trees, the lake with a fence around it... Yet, the room itself is bland. The cause of that problem is characteristic for what makes this whole level feel dull: It doesn't have its own texture set. Its main texture is the gray Mine Maze wall, even though that doesn't fit the forest theme as well. JEV3 has made some pretty god-like forest textures, and I think this whole level needs reworking to be purged to the rocks and re-designed as an actual forest. Not only will a distinct texture set make the level look more engaging, it will also make it more original.
Coming back from the lake room, I find the gameplay to be horrid there. The concept is actually fairly interesting, as the bridge would theoretically lead to an exit if that wasn't fenced off. The player gets a feeling of "how do I solve that problem now?" and starts exploring. But the end result is just underwhelming: a no-action waterslide and a no-action zoom tube, then you're there. Once you have found the way to solve the problem, it's all auto-pilot. Now if there was some underwater tunnel leading up there, maybe with some additional action inside it (or at least some platforming), that room would suddenly become a centerpiece of the stage, and help a lot in making it a much better level.
I won't go over the other path at the beginning, because I think it's main flaw lies in the lack of forest-ness, which I already addressed. The room after the zoom tube actually looks fairly good, except for the out-of-place MM rocks. The introduction of the rotating chains after that is not particularly well-made. When introducing a gimmick, you should make sure that the player has to use it, and you make sure that failure doesn't result in death. In this case, both aren't true. There is a death pit spanning most of the room and you can just bypass the chain entirely by thokking. The sudden castle elements that now pop up in the next room utterly destroy the buildup of the level, just as that lone mace does. It really feels at this point like no thought went into the concept of this level, and that it is just a culmination of random ideas with no logical progression. That is a really big problem, and it just destroys the level.
The rotating chains inside the tree trunks are probably the only really good idea in this level, but I still feel like the chain gimmick is not used to its fullest. The waterslide section is totally inappropriate and makes this level feel even less original than it already is. Waterslides belong to DSZ, and I don't wanna see them return here. The idea of using a chain to propel you over a dam is a good one though, it just needs a better implementation. The castle at the end is indeed very nice-looking, but the rest of the room was just totally neglected for it.
All in all, this level feels redundant. It has no original ideas, a boring visual theme, and not even a logical transition. I really don't know if this level can be fixed without remaking large chunks of it. It also doesn't help that there is a lack of alternate paths, which means that you need to come up with even more ideas for this level. A forest is not a thankful surrounding for interesting design.
Castle Eggman Zone Act 2 - 4/10
Yes, I actually gave this a better score than the first act. While the design here is actually much more haphazard and less refined than in Act 1, this one at least has interesting ideas going for it. That means that in the end, transforming this stage into something good is much easier than with the first Act 1. It does, however, need a lot of work. The visuals are actually quite decent in a few spots, but totally lacking in others. The very first room is not bad, and offers some nice ideas, but it's too empty as a whole. Additionally, those spiraling staircases look unrealistic, and the "towers" they lead up to are not really towers. The overhead bridge that can only be reached from said towers would be a great location for an alternate path, considering that there is a lack of a second path at the beginning anyway. The castle walls need some more decoration too, brick textures exhibit Moire patterns very quickly.
The door that opens when you collected all emeralds is not exactly a great idea. I don't feel like getting to skip an integral part of the level is a reward. Another thing that needs to be addressed is the Tails/Knuckles 1-up room. It is just weirdly designed, with random stuff crammed everywhere, and it really looks confusing and not structured. This, of course, applies both to the room itself and the entrance from below. Also, I don't really think the room itself is a great idea. Tails and Knuckles have a much easier time than Sonic already, and giving them twelve exclusive extra lives makes things worse.
But now let's get back to the level proper. The idea behind the first dungeon room is great, and I really like that bridge with the swinging spikeballs. But I don't get what all the random stuff on the lower levels is doing there. Why are there spinning maces in an area where I'm not even supposed to go and which doesn't offer any real award? It just feels like those were put there to make the room feel less empty, and that's not a good thing. The special stage token location is also not all that great, it's just a pit with some random spikes, to be blunt. The rotating spikeballs are a cool hazard, but what are flamethrowers doing in a castle level? They are a good gimmick, but they just don't fit here. Save those for RVZ instead.
The exit to the next room feels like an easy way out. A spring tucked away in a corner, and another spring on a ledge, then you're there. That doesn't flow all too well and doesn't feel organic. It's actually rather hackish, sort of like nobody could think of a real way to get the player up that ledge. The idea of the following room is not bad, but the execution is horrid. This is a prime example of a room which was built to contain a gimmick and then was neglected. The room is basically a square with some hanging platforms in it, and there are spikes below each wooden platform. This gimmick needs to be integrated into the level, but here it feels like the level was built around the gimmick.
So, now we're in the second courtyard, and it's quite obvious that this room is not complete. In case it actually is complete, whoever decided that THIS is enough should hide in shame. The whole room is empty, and the Moire pattern stretches everywhere. Either make this room much smaller, or add much more content and decoration. I do like the spinning chain leading to the alternate path, but the other path feels much more obvious and easier to access in comparison. On both paths at this point, we get some very good ideas that are drowned out and overshadowed by very sloppy execution. Much of it probably comes from the unfinished-ness, and I think there was just to little time spent on this map.
The trap dungeon from the old CEZ2 is a good idea, but the random buttons on the floor don't feel like a very clever activation method. I'd rather see some more complicated mechanic being used to release these Jetty-syns, although it should be something that fits the castle theme. The following room, while containing some nice ideas with the swinging mace and the cogwheels, is another example of the functional but uninteresting design found everywhere in this level. Essentially, it's a gratewalk over a pit, and that does not make for a very interesting setting. The last room is horrid in terms of execution, even if the individual gameplay elements are awesome. The problem is, yet again, how they were incorporated. The whole room is an empty square, and most of it never gets used, while small parts around the edge are where all the action is. This section should probably be split into several rooms which actually feel like they contain something, even if the gameplay elements and the rising water concept can and should be retained. This would of course also remove the lag.
The beginning of the other path, with the somewhat empty bridge and the windows out to the cannonball room that are too small and tucked away to be noticed might need some additional attention to make it less of a hallway. Just a bit more decoration and exposing these windows properly would help already. The turret room has a cool concept, and I like the idea of destroying pillars to bring something on the ceiling down, but what is a mechanical laser turret doing in a castle? The corridor after that with the spinning chains is great, and one of the few sections that I have nothing to complain about. The red carpet and the flames to the sides are appropriate as decoration, and make the level actually feel like a castle. Then, the cannonball room. It's the very definition of bland, and it simply looks horrid. Also, these staircases don't fit there at all and the button platform just look totally weird as a result. I also feel like the player should be forced to stop more, since the cannonballs rarely have time to catch up. The rising floors after that feel more like some weird experiment than an actual section of the level. It doesn't feel very thought-out and complete (well, it isn't), and the corridor-heavy design throws me off.