Srb2 - Srb2k6regenerated mod

[corneliab]

This mod is pretty, but doesn't play good enough. In the hub you have some rings that hint you about where to go but god forbid you stray off the path those rings provide or else you won't make it to the level because you have to grab every single one without fail or else you're not getting in the level. If you could add a bit more rings instead of putting JUST the right amount to enter the level, it would be kind of nice, because it completely defeats the purpose of exploration. If you stray off the path then try to get back on it you won't be able to know where the rings originally were, and you won't know where it is that you didn't grab them, making you lost.
The "action stages", or something like that, had some interesting platforming, but it gets overshadowed by a lacking in gimmicks, I know this is the beginning of the mod and levels shouldn't be too hard, but I didn't play with anything, and only moved forwards, without any real challenge whatsoever. A nice part was on the desert level, where some platforms rised and fell on quicksand. I thought that was neat and fun.
But other than that, this mod leaves much to be desired.
It's all bells and whistles and nice decorations on top of the cake, but the cake is hollow and full of air, and you'll go through it in 10 minutes, tops.

For fuck's sake, it's an ALPHA. Of course there's not going to be much in the ways of exploration. That's probably the purpose of the those ring paths- to direct you to the stuff that's done and/or functional. The way I see it, the hub and whatnot was thrown in for good measure, and it's clear there's a lot more that will be added later in terms of interaction and optional content (medals, missions, scripts, etc).

Also, what the hell are you going on about regarding challenge? There's enemies all over. If that isn't enough to you, (and for some reason you would like more bottomless pits and death traps so flippin' early in the game), I would say that the creative and path-filled stage layouts combined with the surfboarding section (which I honestly think could afford to be more forgiving) make up for that.

Additionally, what is all this about a "lack of gimmicks"? I spotted plenty, such as the zoom tube whirlpool (which was awesome, by the way), the dash panels, the Nights-style trick rings, and of course, the entirety of the surfboard section.

That whole "ten minutes tops" thing is totally iffy as well. I don't know about anyone else, but I certainly exceeded ten minutes on BOTH stages as I explored and combed the areas for paths and secrets.

Sorry, but most of your complaints just seem completely bogus, especially for something that's clearly in its early stages.

 

[Cirom]

I tried booting the WAD up in normal SRB2 to see what would happen.

Nothing changed. What's the deal with that, was the EXE just for show? Wasting space? D: You can just as easily play in 2.0.4 than you can in "2.0.1"

...Wait a minute, 2.0.1?

 

[Autosaver]

Its not finished yet, so I'm sure Thompson can fix everything by then.
Edit: So.. I just played it.. and...

I didn't really like it. The hubworld has a whole bunch of graphic glitches. It was boring and the ring idea is just meh. The surfboard level was too slow and for whatever reason. I feel the jump button is delayed. O_o

Wave Ocean 1 wasn't that fun. You usually just ran across a path. Then the surfing.. oh god. You can die the instant you get on the board. Screw surfing and ring hunting.

 

[Chengi]

In my honest opinion, I consider this a good alpha.

The exploration was fun, I didn't even WANT to go to Wave Ocean first. Soleanna's design was pretty open area, as for the buildings, you might want to make them more "lively". Add some more people, and maybe tweak Jeff's pallette.

As for Wave Ocean, the beginning was fun, but it seemed a tad bit cramped. I remember the original game having a bit more open area. Add some scenery, like a rock in the ocean, or a far off island. In the submiddle, it seemed a bit like a maze, I had a bit of trouble finding out where to go. I got to the next checkpoint, and got to the cove slide. The texture in the cove doesn't fit, and you should make it more cove-like, add some stalagmites (er, however you spell it) and stuff, I got to the moving platform part, and I think you may want to add more scenery, it was kind of bland. (prepare for the rant about the surfing part :/) I absolutely think you could do better on the surfing part of Wave Ocean, slow things down a bit, or move some stuff; I also think you should make it more "arrow key friendly" for non-strafing, non-match users.

Eggman was a tad boring, I think you could add a gimmick or two. I only got up to halfway of Dusty Desert, so I haven't played much yet. Despite the flaws I've mentioned, it's pretty good for an alpha.

 

[Kyasarin]

The hubworld has a whole bunch of graphic glitches.

Define "a whole bunch", because I only remember three of them, and I did a lot of exploring.

It was boring and the ring idea is just meh.

Can you at least describe why you don't like it? "Meh" isn't exactly descriptive.

The surfboard level was too slow and for whatever reason. I feel the jump button is delayed. O_o

It was a tutorial level showing off how surfing works. It shouldn't have ridiculous speeds, should it?
The jump button isn't delayed.
And can you stop cutting off your sentences like that? It's annoying.

Wave Ocean 1 wasn't that fun. You usually just ran across a path.

There was a decent amount of platforming. It isn't just "running across a path".
There's also only one-Act Zones.

Then the surfing... oh god. You can die the instant you get on the board. Screw surfing and ring hunting.

Other than the crushing ceilings which aren't obvious and the minor problem of control, I don't see why you dislike it other than not being good it at.



Anyways, I actually enjoyed this mod and thought it was pretty cool.

Wave Ocean had very good scenery and fun platforming. The enemy placement suited the level and added some challenge and skill-taking to it.
There was a lot to explore in the level which made it feel pretty big and spacious. The ramps added for some fun replay value and the alternate routes were interesting. I especially liked the one in the upper area of the cave.
The texture use, aside from in the surfing cave, was well-varied and didn't get repetitive.
I actually liked the platforming (despite there not being a large amount of gimmicks) and I enjoyed the surfing area; it was creative and well-done. The ramp secrets made it more interesting.
However, I disliked the unforgivingness of the surfing section at times; the controls can sometimes be hard to control and force the player to get killed for pretty unfair reasons, mainly because you aren't able to move in time to dodge a falling rock. The Spikeballs that punish you for trying to ramp is pretty lame, as well.
The level isn't multiplayer-friendly in the surfing part, which could probably be fixed by removing the big wall at the end of the cave; it doesn't work unless all players are at it, and when they get there, they're stuck in their surfing animations and Springs refuse to work.
The crushing ceilings in the cave you surf through really weren't predictable at first.
The Hoop that takes you to the cave with invincibility near the waterslide is easy to get with Sonic if you jump on the "slopes" to your left and right and Thok into it.
The lighthouse shouldn't have the same white texture all over; finding the entrance was confusing enough because I couldn't find the exit, and the layout of it didn't make sense (going in, then going back out in a totally different area?).
The enemy-hopping really didn't make much sense, as I figured that the giant "X" marks on the ground were meant to be switches of some sort.
The button with the "?" on it didn't serve a purpose and I didn't get why it was there.
The ending of the level felt pretty anticlimactic; having Sonic surf and approach the shoreline would've been much cooler, in my opinion. Having Sonic appear on a lush island with a lot of trees and a dock of some sort (perhaps to show how they get back to Solleana?) would've been a nice touch.

Dusty Desert I actually found less enjoyable, but it was still a pretty nice level.
The scenery was great, especially near the end, where it opened up and felt like a giant ruin in a huge desert. The architecture was nice and I really liked the oasis areas that you set up. They feel really natural and nice. The holes in the ceiling that let light come in through are nice, and the cave was very cool.
The platforming was still pretty fun and I don't have any problems with the Thing placement.
I liked the area with the "sandfalls" that pushed you into the pits.
There was a Gargoyle puzzle that, while inventive, it was annoying to work with due to the Thing collision. The Gargoyle can either miss the platform, get stuck under it, or have the player push it off by accident, which gets frustrating.
The area where you Spindash through a low height is weird because of how it's pretty cramped. Widen it up.
The following room needs something to kill you if you fall, because you currently have to redo all the platforming you did to get up there. Same with the high area where the Gargoyle puzzle is.

The town was actually done pretty nicely. The scenery was good and it made it feel like a real town.
However, the NPCs didn't feel lively enough. There isn't too much of them and they don't seem to be actually doing anything.
The Ring collecting, while fun, it forces the player to collect every single Ring, which is frustrating at times because when you get to Wave Ocean, the first six Rings are totally out of sight.
Searching the desert area got it bit annoying. The way you reappear after sinking felt really weird and didn't make sense. Some of the Rings are a bit too hard to find.
The way the ocean cuts off into "sky" at the dam feels really weird. Try extending the ocean out a little bit more and putting and island or something in there so it looks more natural, and putting an invisible FOF so the player can't get through.

The boss stages were really disappointing. Eggman was the usual, and Silver was the same thing but with new sprites.



Overall, I thought this was a very enjoyable mod with good level design with fun platforming and great scenery. The main flaws are the sometimes-confusing town segments, the lack of control in the surfing area, and some sometimes-annoying gimmicks that I mentioned above.
I'm looking forward to the final.

 

[Violo]

The boss stages were really disappointing. Eggman was the usual, and Silver was the same thing but with new sprites.

Silver seemed different enough for me, but it was just a bit too easy on the first go. I like though if you try to attack him too long he'll blast you away. I didn't feel disappointed though, just it was the general bosses and one that turned into Hulk every so often.

Pretty much what Kyasarin said, but those falling blocks to me were quite predictable after the first one whch guides you out of the way. The only tricky one was the third one as the controls prevent you from going into the corner which makes it very hard tying to make up that lost time in the minority of a straight you have. I guess it's just the mechanics of SRB2 for ya.

 

[Arf]

Time to defend my argument, isn't it?

For fuck's sake, it's an ALPHA. Of course there's not going to be much in the ways of exploration.

It's not finished you can't say anything bad!!!!!!
By the by, you might as well read my post again, because I never said the mod was bad, just lacking, and although that's expected for an alpha, there's still the problem of it being pretty. How would he, perchance, be able to have so much time to work on decorations, as it is an alpha, and not on the design? If it's such an early point to criticize it, because it's not done, and it hasn't had enough time to be developed, then how the hell do some parts look so pretty?

That's probably the purpose of the those ring paths- to direct you to the stuff that's done and/or functional. The way I see it, the hub and whatnot was thrown in for good measure, and it's clear there's a lot more that will be added later in terms of interaction and optional content (medals, missions, scripts, etc).

I can agree to that much, but, what bad would it do to have so much as an extra 10 rings laying around? Hell, at least an item box. Something to make exploring more interesting, rather than "Ok it's not finished please ignore this".

Also, what the hell are you going on about regarding challenge?

First level, that is to be expected, yes. The challenge on wave ocean is fun but it's too enemy reliant.

There's enemies all over.

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
Are you seriously implying that MORE enemies = more challenge?
Have you played early Mystic Realm? Hell, have you played ERZ2? The challenge doesn't come through the amount of enemies. The challenge comes from WHERE they are placed and how they behaviour WORKS with the level design. It's not about making A SHITLOAD of enemies, it's about making them a little puzzle in and on themselveses when facing them off.

If that isn't enough to you, (and for some reason you would like more bottomless pits and death traps so flippin' early in the game),

Beginning of the game, understandable.

I would say that the creative and path-filled stage layouts combined with the surfboarding section (which I honestly think could afford to be more forgiving) make up for that.

I'll let you know that I just replayed this, just for you.
I tried to play wave ocean, but since the surfing tutorial CAN'T be skipped, you have to go through it, and the end token wasn't solid because I had already grabbed it on my first playthrough. This is another understandable hiccup, and will be surely fixed. Now, I changed maps to wave ocean and saw how "path filled" it was.
And path filled it was.
Path as in hallways.
Hallways as in you have to move along this and don't you dare move anywhere else.
Hallways as in 3 of them... And they rejoined on the same point IIRC. So you started on a single place, chose one out of the three paths and then went back to the main path. Hallways connected by hallways. I didn't try Sand ocean, or the second level, (I'm not saying this in mock, rather that I honestly can't remember its name) but I remember something similar, but a bit more interesting.

Additionally, what is all this about a "lack of gimmicks"? I spotted plenty, such as the zoom tube whirlpool (which was awesome, by the way), the dash panels, the Nights-style trick rings, and of course, the entirety of the surfboard section.

"Oh hey, this is a zoom tube and I totally can't do anything! It's like the game is playing itself for me! yay!"
I'll agree that it is a neat special effect, but it's not a gimmick, I can't do anything on it rather than watch. BOLD ITALIC UNDERLINED EMPHASIS. IN CAPS. I'm not saying it should be removed. I liked it, and thought it was cool, but it's NOT a gimmick.
And the surfboard. It's a waterslide with different sprites, and I didn't like it. Don't turn for me, game, I'm surfing, I should be turning.
You know what'd be AWESOME? A surfing section in which you can rotate 360, and sonic accelerates without you doing anything. You rotate him and you can roam anywhere and choose your paths freely. That'd be balls-awesome. the trick rings were nice, I'll give you that.
Dash panels? I feel they are a sympton of "don't put your hands out of the window" gameplay that is present in sonic adventure and onwards. STAY ON THAT PATH.

That whole "ten minutes tops" thing is totally iffy as well. I don't know about anyone else, but I certainly exceeded ten minutes on BOTH stages as I explored and combed the areas for paths and secrets.

Yeah you're right. Ten minutes is weird. I'd say 8. I spent about 10 minutes of non gameplay being lost and trying to find those damned hub rings and exploring, but core gameplay doesn't exceed that much, unless you count the surf tutorial which would add about 1:38. There is replayability to be found in the sand level, but wave ocean isn't that interesting to replay.

Sorry, but most of your complaints just seem completely bogus, especially for something that's clearly in its early stages.

Yeah.

EDIT: Oh and another thing I wanted to add. This mod completely ruined springs. You can't tell at a glance (hell, I don't think there's any difference in the sprites) wether a spring will be of yellow, red or blue power. That lead to much misaimed jumps and lots of AAAAARGHHHHH.
And no, I'm not saying this mod is bad. What I'm saying is that you're all praising it, even though so far it's only looks. But I'll accept those looks are pretty. No Botanic Serenity stuff, but still pretty.

 

[Autosaver]

Define "a whole bunch", because I only remember three of them, and I did a lot of exploring.

Mainly a bunch of HOM while I was running around. Though, Thompson knows this because I remember him stating that it does have some glitches.

Can you at least describe why you don't like it? "Meh" isn't exactly descriptive.

The hub world is just a giant hub with no extras. Ring collecting isn't fun. I want to play the game, not "Find 70 rings before you enter! :D"

It was a tutorial level showing off how surfing works. It shouldn't have ridiculous speeds, should it?

I never said it should have super fast speeds, and it would be nice if you could skip the tutorial.

There was a decent amount of platforming. It isn't just "running across a path". There's also only one-Act Zones.

I probably didn't far enough. I'll continue playing the mod when I have the time.

Other than the crushing ceilings which aren't obvious and the minor problem of control, I don't see why you dislike it other than not being good it at.

Don't you think that first levels shouldn't have death traps right in front of the starting point?

Oh, I agree with too many crawlas everywhere. Free lives I guess.
PS: Why the hell do you lecture me about my sentences? Whining about it every post isn't going to change anything.

 

[Blue_Blur]

And the surfboard. It's a waterslide with different sprites, and I didn't like it. Don't turn for me, game, I'm surfing, I should be turning.

I agree with you there. First time going through was annoying because of how difficult it is to turn the board and i also kept getting crushed. Once I memorized all the traps though, the Wave Ocean surfing part was quite enjoyable.

 

[Autosaver]

I hate trial and error levels. >: (

Am I the only one... or does Knuckles' surfing sprite look a little odd?

 

[sims]

Well it's... pretty. That's about the best thing I can say about it.

Hunting for rings is largely unnecessary and only creates Fake Longevity. Plus, while I can make myself understand buying the surfboard (not to mention the largely unnecessary yet required tutorial. I KNOW HOW TO PRESS JUMP, LEFT, AND RIGHT GAME KTHXBAI), but why in hell do you need rings to access the actual level? I want to play god damnit, not waste three minutes looking for those last three rings. And another thing about rings, if you're going to put them in, why not make a surplus? Players don't want to waste time hunting for rings, believe it or not. If the requirement is 70 rings, place 80 or so and not exactly 70 please.

And as for the levels themselves, they're not much more than "meh". Yes, Wave Ocean is pretty, but it's also fairly annoying. Whirlpool sequence is for the most part completely pointless, as is some of the springing around parts. Again, see Fake Longevity.

The surfing part is for the most part just a fancy current and should be removed. The (again unnecessary) tutorial teaches you what can be explained with the words "Press left to go left. Press right to go right. Press jump to jump." Wave Ocean's surfing part is even worse, because as soon as the sequence started, before I had any time to react HELLO CRUSHING CEILING THANK YOU FOR KILLING ME. I had trouble jumping over the spikes because there's a blue hedgehog covering a good part of my screen which makes it hard to see impending obstacles. If you're going to keep it, at least find a way to adjust the camera so we can see obstacles farther than five feet in front of me.

So yeah. That was my experience with the mod. I don't like it yet.

 

[Autosaver]

Thank god I had another person have similar reasons as me.

Like Kyasarin said, it is cool. As Arf said, its the icing on the cake.
But... what is inside the cake? Its the content inside that counts not the frosting,icing,or gloss to make it look pretty and cool.

Oh my god! That many rings? You sure expect me to do that? I'm warping.... >_>

 

[corneliab]

It's not finished you can't say anything bad!!!!!!
By the by, you might as well read my post again, because I never said the mod was bad, just lacking, and although that's expected for an alpha, there's still the problem of it being pretty.

And you should probably read MY post again, since I never said you were calling the mod bad. I did, however, heavily imply that your complaints were overblown for something like an alpha. Hell, you even said it yourself that alphas are expected to be lacking (which it clearly is here- 2 stages and a largely empty hub area). The fact that you could somehow twist a clear perk into an "issue" here though (the visuals) is just mindblowing. It's like you can't comprehend how level design and visuals can coinside.

The rest of your post either consists of you either getting hung up on minor points while acting like a condescending ass or agreeing with me, so there's not much more to say there.

It's just strange how some of you folks can harp on something like this, as if there's certain standards to be met. Last I checked, shit like Boogie Palace, Grand Canyon and the plethora of useless match stages were the norm around here.

Oh my god! That many rings? You sure expect me to do that? I'm warping.... >_>

If you actually bothered navigating the straightfoward rising ruin sequence that preceeded the monitor instead of just gliding over there as Knuckles, you would have picked up close to 160.

 

[Autosaver]

I just finished the mod.

It was decent I guess. Oh, I loved the Nights circle thing. You should try making a NiGHTS stage. :o
Edit: Even if I glided over there, why do I need to collect the rings? Why not cut the amount down to like 10-50. Not close to 200.

 

[Srb2kirbyo]

I don't get it, expect for the 35 rings challenge there IS no challenge... Just follow the rings.. They are not hidden.

 

[Chengi]

I agree. I often found myself in a struggle finding rings. I say either lower the amount, or add more rings to the level.

@Srb2kirbyo: Well, there are like, 6 or so behind you when you start, so they aren't ALL in a path.

 

[Arf]

And you should probably read MY post again, since I never said you were calling the mod bad. I did, however, heavily imply that your complaints were overblown for something like an alpha. Hell, you even said it yourself that alphas are expected to be lacking (which it clearly is here- 2 stages and a largely empty hub area). The fact that you could somehow twist a clear perk into an "issue" here though (the visuals) is just mindblowing. It's like you can't comprehend how level design and visuals can coinside.

When the stuff used for visuals is usually part of the gameplay, like a tree that serves as a platform aside from a neat visual, it's good. Other stuff too. I guess that's how it works? Then why is a whirlpool completely unplayable? I could list aprts in which it was used to great avail, like an actual tree with springs on wave ocean and rising stuff on sand ocean. I think that's how it works! I think? I don't know!
How did I twist a perk? I said the mod was pretty, and that people were only saying this mod is "cool" because it's pretty and not because it plays well. That won't excuse anything. It looks good, I have said that a zillion times, but it doesn't play good, and the fact that it seems visuals were worked on more than level design was what worried me.

The rest of your post either consists of you either getting hung up on minor points while acting like a condescending ass or agreeing with me, so there's not much more to say there.

Maybe I didn't word myself clearly in that statement. Go ahead and ignore the million other instances of me going "It looks pretty good, but it doesn't play well."
Looks like you're the one harping on minor errors, such as an only sentence.

It's just strange how some of you folks can harp on something like this, as if there's certain standards to be met. Last I checked, shit like Boogie Palace, Grand Canyon and the plethora of useless match stages were the norm around here.

I never praised such levels you mentioned, and criticizing something because it worked on a system but not in a new one isn't a good argument. Try playing doom levels in SRB2.
Gee, wonder how that plays.

On the topic of agreeing with you, I agree with you on the points that are right, and I digress on the ones I think you're wrong. What's wrong with that? Can't I admit to being wrong? Can't I question your opinion just like you did with mine? What is it with you people getting hosed up because I didn't like a mod? For christ's sake it's a videogame. I'll chill.

 

[Autosaver]

I don't get it, expect for the 35 rings challenge there IS no challenge... Just follow the rings.. They are not hidden.

What is the point if 160 rings are on a path? Why bother making it an objective?

 

[Srb2kirbyo]

Yes, The 35 ring challenge (right?) which I though I said was an exception. But still most are on the path just zoom your cam out a bit if you need to.

Edit: Oh, So the hub stage is useful. (I think)

Still... it is not that hard.

 

[sims]

It doesn't matter if it's easy or not, they serve no purpose other than to create artificial longevity for the game.

I'm pretty sure I've said that numerous times.