My fourth PoP mod (unnamed as of yet)

[mk1995]

Please indicate what you prefer not to be discussed (or spoiled) about levels 1-4.

Actually, it's fine with me whatever you talk about. As long as it's not where the life potions are located and how you get them.

[Kaslghnoon]

Your mod has the potential to be remembered as one of the best. So far it has avoided all the elements that would make someone like myself lose interest. I was able to complete all 4 levels and after many attempts I managed to grab all but one of the life potions that you have placed.

From the player's perspective:
-Fun to play: The levels are not long and you don't need to open 10+ gates just to finish an early level
-No cheating is required
-Rewards for skilled and experienced players (life potions)
-Genre = Horror! Player is anticipated to see where/when things turn around for the prince

From a mod maker's perspective:
-Doesn't use a lot of rooms
-There is no accessible death zone where no room exists
-No chomper is used in levels 1 and 2
-No high-skilled guard is used so far
-No unsupported block is seen floating in mid-air
-Not many gates/events are used, things are kept simple
-Good utilization of loose tiles


What I hope to see in upcoming levels:
-Difficult levels
-Extremely difficult life potions that look impossible to get but in fact aren't (it'll be nice if illogical room linking is not involved with the most difficult ones)
-At least one use of an open potion
-Tricks/bugs being exploited

What I hope not to see in upcoming levels:
-Invert potion
-Overuse of the feather fall potion
-Two or more bosses in one level (ie: two or more Politicians, two Jaffars)
-Instant death caused by nonexistent rooms
-Level 7 guards
-Fake visuals (like the ones in the original SNES when you go through walls...etc)
-Mirrors

[mk1995]

Your mod has the potential to be remembered as one of the best. So far it has avoided all the elements that would make someone like myself lose interest.

Thanks for all that positive feedback. And for the short poem.

I was able to complete all 4 levels and after many attempts I managed to grab all but one of the life potions that you have placed.

Care to tell me via PM? I could give you a hint or two on how to get it. But I'm sure you meant the life potion at Level 2.

-Genre = Horror! Player is anticipated to see where/when things turn around for the prince

"Horror"? Never thought of my mod to have the potential of being horror-themed. But I guess it's because I know my levels...

-Doesn't use a lot of rooms

Is that a bad thing...?

-No high-skilled guard is used so far

Guards aren't very tricky on skills other than 6, 7 and 10 anyway...

-No unsupported block is seen floating in mid-air

Yeah... I tried to make the level design somewhat realistic (e.g. no spiked without wall tiles below).

-Not many gates/events are used, things are kept simple

This is quite a curse to me - in many of my mods and levelsets, Level 2 barely has any gates... >_>

-Difficult levels

You got it. By now, only life potions have been the hard thing.

-Extremely difficult life potions that look impossible to get but in fact aren't (it'll be nice if illogical room linking is not involved with the most difficult ones)

This could be difficult to pull off. I plan to install multiple life potions per level so I can't sacrifice half of my rooms available to get one of them. I was having trouble with how to do it in Level 3, and even more in Level 4...

-At least one use of an open potion

I'll see what I can do.

-Tricks/bugs being exploited

I'm no trick master myself, so this might be a bit more difficult. But a quick trip through AuraDragon's trick bootcamp should do.

-Invert potion

Hmm... Invert potions can actually increase a level's difficulty somewhat as it decreases the player's orientation ability. But give me one good reason not to use them.

-Two or more bosses in one level (ie: two or more Politicians, two Jaffars)

I'll keep that in mind.

-Instant death caused by nonexistent rooms

Do bottomless pits count, too?

-Level 7 guards

You want difficult levels, but you don't want guards with a skill of 7? Would it still be fine if I used two at most?

-Fake visuals (like the ones in the original SNES when you go through walls...etc)

You can't do that with the PC version anyway.

-Mirrors

No mirrors in places other than Level 4 - that's how I always go.

[Kaslghnoon]

Here is how I picture the horror:
Things are too good to be true. It's all fun and games for the prince. Level exit doors open without much difficulty (level 2). Life potions are there but they don't seem to be needed to get to the exits so he ignores them. But then the shadow appears and little after drinks one of his life potions, prince doesn't care much. The easiness continues all the way through the end of level 6 when the shadow closes the gate on him and he falls, that's when the horror starts...

About all the 24 rooms not being used, is it a bad thing? No, it's great! It's efficient, quick, and it allows later editing if needed. The point I made about the lack of gates/events was also a positive one. You say your level 2 barely has any gates, level 2 of my mod has no gates... Coincidence?

Invert potions:
They promote cheating especially if they are placed in a way that you must take them (level 2 in Repetition of Time). Can you honestly tell me that you have the patience to look around for the other potion to correct the screen and not Shit+I it? I can't. The way you used them in level 2 is fine by me but if there is no way to avoid them then I would feel as if the game is cheating the player thus it would give me the OK to cheat. Once cheating is enabled to complete a level, the mod's prestige is ruined. As a personal preference I simply hate them in any mod, any level. Because of inverts, I can no longer anticipate drinking the feather falls for sure, it would provide a sense of security for the player to know that invert potions don't exist in a mod, it would also make feather fall potions more prestigious to see/drink.

Bottomless pits:
Although I'm not a fan of them, at least they are not killing the game like the ones on the side do. I understand that sometimes they can be useful in room conservation but if you ask me: They're not really needed, a row of spikes on the lowest ground can make them obsolete. Bottomless pits can make a mod look 'lazy' from a designer point of view.

Level 7 guards:
If they have more than 4 health points, they are annoying. I would be alright with them if they were an optional part of a level (to get a life potion) but if I saw a level guarded with 2 or 3 of these on top of puzzles and other obstacles, I would have a hard time taking a level like that seriously. To answer your question: Two level7 guards per mod sounds reasonable unless the mod is 'The Tournament' type, in that case more is OK.

Feel free to disagree if we're not seeing eye-to-eye on things :razz:

[mk1995]

Feel free to disagree if we're not seeing eye-to-eye on things :razz:

There's nothing I disagree to. You proved your points in a very valid and understandable way. Surely, I'll keep all that in mind.

[Eagle-Head Priest 97]

Oh wow. No wonder my mods are so bad!

[Tristan]

Oh wow. No wonder my mods are so bad!

your mods arnt bad theyre great

[mk1995]

Oh wow. No wonder my mods are so bad!

your mods arnt bad theyre great

For once, he's right. C'mon, Levi! Your mods aren't bad at all - you just need to learn proper usage of the palace decorations. I put up a tutorial for that quite a while ago back then on PoPUW forums, but it's lost now, sadly...

[Eagle-Head Priest 97]

Thanks. I did though decide to give up on into the dungeons right now. I started a new mod. The first level was made the way a prince of persia level should. It was not hard at all. The sad thing is, if the computer I made it on never comes back on, I'm fooked. The electricity went out this afternoon, and it's been powered off since.

[mk1995]

Everyone, I have resumed working on this mod. Level 5 has been created to some extent and I'm really struggling with keeping the difficulty I wanted to have this time around.

[Dark77]

Hm, it looks interesting! I'll sure try
Well, i see you don't change appearance of characters and dungeons, but do you change other things? (I'm sure you change title screen, but anything else?)

[mk1995]

I'm getting to that once I completed the levels.

[Balanced]

Invert potions:
They promote cheating especially if they are placed in a way that you must take them (level 2 in Repetition of Time). Can you honestly tell me that you have the patience to look around for the other potion to correct the screen and not Shit+I it? I can't. The way you used them in level 2 is fine by me but if there is no way to avoid them then I would feel as if the game is cheating the player thus it would give me the OK to cheat. Once cheating is enabled to complete a level, the mod's prestige is ruined. As a personal preference I simply hate them in any mod, any level. Because of inverts, I can no longer anticipate drinking the feather falls for sure, it would provide a sense of security for the player to know that invert potions don't exist in a mod, it would also make feather fall potions more prestigious to see/drink.

My english isn't bad, but I just don't understand this? Could you explain this for me please?

[mk1995]

Basically, what Kaslghnoon in on to is that if you use an invert potion in an unavoidable way, it makes the mod suck tenfold. He thinks the way I used it in Level 2 (have another invert close-by) is okay, though.

[Balanced]

Ah, thanks